Volunteer opportunities
Meet new friends and learn new skills
The Friends welcomes volunteers to help Saffron Walden Town Council with the upkeep and development of the Garden. A band of volunteers meets regularly to keep the Garden in trim and behind the scenes we have archivists, photographers and other volunteers helping with the website. Read on for some voluntary roles we would love your help with:
Gardening
We meet every Thursday morning at 10 am at the visitor centre, March to December and work in the Garden for a couple of hours before lunch. There are many different garden rooms so we work somewhere new each week. It’s very rewarding as a group of us can make a big impact over the morning.
On the last Thursday of the month, we share a picnic lunch and usually have an event such as a guided walk, talk or workshop. No special gardening skills are needed. We learn from each other and there are specialists on hand. It is very sociable and flexible and people come as often or as little as they
like - every little bit helps!
All volunteers who work in the Garden are registered with Saffron Walden Town Council. You will be asked to fill in a few forms but it does not take long and you will soon be gardening. The Friends assist the Senior Gardener with this and help coordinate the Thursday sessions. Volunteers are also welcome to work in the Garden at other times by arrangement with the Senior Gardener.
Please join us! You can just arrive at 10am any Thursday morning from March – December or for more information contact the Volunteer Coordinator at friends@bridgeendgarden.org or the Senior Gardener at BEG@saffronwalden.gov.uk.
Work experience
Thinking of a change of career to gardening or horticulture? Then this could be a stepping stone. One way to gain experience is to volunteer in the Garden. Saffron Walden Town Council welcomes people who want to work longer hours to gain experience and may, in some circumstances, pay travel expenses. All the former volunteers who have taken this route have gone on to careers in horticulture. Contact the Senior Gardener BEG@saffronwalden.gov.uk
Archives
Behind the scenes a team from The Friends has been researching and documenting the history of the Garden. It’s fascinating work with constant new discoveries about the history of our Garden and its links to the town.
The Fry family has given The Friends twelve nineteenth-century diaries. Five were written by Francis Gibson, who was largely responsible for creating the Garden, four by his son Frank, and three by his daughter Bessie. A small team of volunteers is transcribing the diaries. New recruits would be welcome. If you are interested in joining us, we would be pleased to show you what it involves.
There are still significant gaps and we are always excited to hear accounts and memories from local people as well as see old photographs. Do you have any childhood memories or special photos taken in the Garden? We would love to hear from you!
Visitor Centre
The Friends was responsible for preparing exhibition panels and interactive screens in the Visitor Centre that explain the history and restoration of the Garden. If you would like to help keep these up to date, we would love to hear from you.
