Horatio’s Garden Stoke Mandeville opened in 2018 at the National Spinal Injuries Centre in Stoke Mandeville Hospital. The spinal centre is one of the largest and oldest in the UK, treating adults and children across the British Isles and Ireland.
Garden designer -
Joe Swift
Watch ITV Meridian’s film about the opening of Horatio’s Garden Stoke Mandeville
Garden designer -
Joe Swift
Celebrated designer Joe Swift is an RHS Chelsea Gold Medal Winner and has presented BBC Gardeners’ World since 1998. He studied at The English Gardening School at the Chelsea Physic Garden in 1990 and has been creating gardens ever since.
Despite his impressive contribution to the world of landscape architecture, Joe regards Horatio’s Garden Stoke Mandeville as “the most important garden I’ve ever designed.” The knowledge that this garden would “affect hundreds of patients and their families and friends” made creating it “a real honour.”
His careful, thoughtful design was recognised by the prestigious Society of Garden Designers in 2021, winning the Healing, Learning or Community Landscapes & Gardens Award.
Watch ITV Meridian’s film about the opening of Horatio’s Garden Stoke Mandeville
Key design features
- Secluded areas to be surrounded by nature, with grasses creating structure and space.
- Highly perennial, sensory and wildlife-friendly planting for all-year round colour, with evergreens lending constant form throughout the seasons.
- A light, airy garden room designed by architect Andrew Wells, with a communal space beyond for gatherings and seasonal events.
- An accessible greenhouse for patients to grow their own plants. Raised beds ideal for garden therapy sessions are often full of herbs, salad leaves and fruits for patients to pick.
“Spending time in the garden and the garden room daily soothed my pain. It helped me with my recovery, allowed me to focus on the positives.”
“The garden has transformed Alfie’s admissions for him and for us all as a family. He loves to be outside and to escape the confines of the ward is a wonderful thing for him.”
Garden team
Head Gardener Amy Moffett is a Kew-trained horticulturalist, with a passion for plants, trees, fungi and wildlife as well as a maker of beautiful jewellery.
Amy is supported by a part time Garden Administrator Claire Addis, Arts Activities Assistant Anna Watkins, WFGA WRAGS trainee David Jones, and a volunteer team.
Thank you to our partners
Regional Partners:
Horatio’s Garden costs £100,000 to maintain per year.
Please consider donating to this garden to help us nurture lives for years to come.
Are you a beneficiary of Horatio’s Garden Stoke Mandeville?
Before: The National Spinal Injuries Centre at Stoke Mandeville Hospital
Now: Horatio’s Garden Stoke Mandeville at The National Spinal Injuries Centre at Stoke Mandeville Hospital
Find us
Horatio’s Garden Stoke Mandeville
The National Spinal Injuries Centre
Stoke Mandeville Hospital
Mandeville Road
Aylesbury
Buckinghamshire
HP21 8AL
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