Garden gloves at the ready: Friends of Old Durham Gardens welcome volunteers and donation from local housebuilder

Friends of Old Durham Gardens, the charity responsible for the maintenance, restoration and management of Old Durham Gardens, has received a £1,500 donation from Barratt Homes North East’s nearby Old Durham Gate development, and welcomed volunteers from the housebuilder’s Finance and site teams.

The £1,500 donation will go towards updating Old Durham Gardens’ 17th-century stone-built gazebo, which will create an improved experience for its many visitors. This includes improving the inside of the building including cupboard shelving, upgrading the appearance of the floor, and giving the internal walls a new lick of paint. As the only building on-site, the gazebo is a fundamental part of the gardens which many people visit, and is also used to hold displays. 

Alongside the donation, employees from the housebuilder’s Finance and site teams donned their gardening gloves and shovels as they volunteered at the gardens. The volunteering saw Barratt Homes’ employees get their hands dirty as they helped out at the gardens with an array of different tasks, including gardening and weeding. All of these efforts play a crucial part in the maintenance and upkeep of the gardens, and have helped to make the gardens look pristine in time for their Spring opening earlier this month.

Established more than 350 years ago, Old Durham Gardens provides a charming public space for everybody to enjoy. The gardens lie less than a mile from Durham city centre, and can be reached through a number of pleasant woodland or riverside walks. The gardens are owned by Durham County Council and have since 2010 been jointly managed with the Friends of Old Durham Gardens. The organisation’s role is to enhance, improve, maintain and protect the environment and landscape at Old Durham Gardens. The rejuvenation of these historic gardens is an ongoing project, with which locals are welcome to help.

Speaking of the donation, Joy Brindle, Chair of Friends of Old Durham Gardens commented: “We are hugely grateful for Barratt Homes’ generous donation, which will be vital in helping us to maintain and improve our visitors’ experience. This building holds such a wonderfully rich history, and we feel it is important for visitors to get a sense of this background when they pay us a visit. 

“We also had the pleasure of welcoming Barratt Homes’ employees to the gardens on the volunteering day, which was a fantastic help and we are so appreciative of their efforts. It’s great to know that we are part of such a supportive community here in Durham, and both this volunteering day and donation from Barratt Homes will make a huge difference to our community.”

Chris Brazell, Finance Director at Barratt Homes’ Old Durham Gate development, said: “It’s wonderful to know that our donation will help to maintain a key building for the Old Durham Gardens site. We felt that it was only right to continue this partnership with our volunteering day at the gardens, in addition to our Community Fund donation. Friends of Old Durham Gardens do such a fantastic job at maintaining the gardens and its rich history, and we’re so pleased to have offered a helping hand. We look forward to seeing the garden bloom as we move into Spring, as more visitors visit the gardens!”

Barratt Homes’ new Old Durham Gate development has recently launched its new Show Homes, including the four-bedroom Riggit and five-bedroom Fallow house types. What’s more, the family room within the Fallow house type was designed by learners from the Percy Hedley Foundation, a local disability charity that supports people with complex learning difficulties and disability needs. The development offers a selection of beautiful two, three, four and five-bedroom homes. Ideally located just two miles from Durham city centre, Old Durham Gate also offers a host of local amenities close by and excellent schools nearby. 

To find out more about Old Durham Gate, visit into the local Sales Office or visit: https://www.barratthomes.co.uk/new-homes/dev002581-old-durham-gate/ 

To find out more about other developments within the Durham area, please visit: www.barratthomes.co.uk/new-homes/north-east/durham