It’s no secret that the horticulture industry has a skills gap. On top of that, it’s facing up to the reality of an ageing workforce. Just 12% of the industry is aged between 25-34, according to a recent Equality, Diversity and Inclusion survey, and a meagre 3% are 16–24-year-olds. Rubbing salt in the wound is the growing climate crisis, to which horticulture – when carried out sustainably – is arguably a much-needed solution.

One organisation attempting to tackle all these hurdles on a local level is Walworth Garden in south London. It was founded nearly 40 years ago, when a derelict space in the London Borough of Southwark was transformed into a community garden by a local group of activists. It became a charity in 1997 and has since grown to offer horticultural training, gardening therapy and its own environmental landscaping services.

It’s a garden that now ‘serves the community that built it,’ according to its website. Part of this is by providing opportunities to join the horticulture industry and attempting to break down a few of the barriers that might prevent a person from doing so.

“It’s a multi-faceted approach,” says Oli Haden, Walworth Garden’s CEO and head gardener. “In the first instance, we try to attract those people who are historically excluded from the industry, and we do this in various ways. We have criteria that we use, by which we make a selection from our external funders – and our funders are varied. Some will be very particular about who they want to fund – geographical location, age group, socio economic situation – whereas others will be less particular.”

When a person applies to study for a Level 2 diploma in Horticulture, and they have a raft of potential barriers to education and perhaps employment, then Walworth Garden tries to organise the funder that will offer the most appropriate support. “That’s not always possible, but that’s what we’re doing in an ideal scenario.”

A funder, for instance, might pay for 20 students from a particular location who come from “seldom heard” groups such as those who are experiencing poverty and/or are unemployed, or those with disabilities. Walworth Garden might then ask for additional support to remove the barriers preventing these individuals from moving into work, such as not being able to afford to travel to work or pay for childcare. “We would be wise as an industry to identify and uplift individuals from these groups.”

Its current cohort of 96 students is therefore “utterly mixed” and it’s a “truly comprehensive education,” says Haden, who was vice principal at an academy for 13 years before joining Walworth Garden and marrying his two passions – education and horticulture. “There are so many benefits to this kind of diverse learning environment,” he says.

The application process is “rigorous” though, upholding the “integrity” of the course and ensuring historically excluded groups are being targeted. One pertinent question asked is the level of education an applicant’s parents received, says Haden. “We’ve found that if we really want to target those who wouldn’t normally get a chance and direct the funding towards these people, then this has proven to be quite an effective screening system. We recognise that if your parents went to university, the likelihood is – and this is a gross generalisation – that the paths are well trodden for you as well. But if you are the first people in your generation to head to a higher level of education, then the ground on which you walk will be more precarious and you may face challenges. And we know that because many of our staff are first generation university goers. Not only that, but we have a vast and varied cohort of staff, and we learn from them too. The fact that our students are often represented here in the workforce means that people feel more comfortable coming in.”

There’s a “remarkable” success rate at the school too, with 90% of students going on to find employment or further education once they’ve graduated. They experience the industry first hand throughout their learning, through the plant centre at Walworth Garden and its own environmental landscaping company, which operates out of its site. “Our students encounter people who work in the industry here. And again, if the funding is able and willing, we provide them with paid work experience, lifting another barrier for those who can’t afford to work unpaid.”

It’s not without its challenges, though. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m not sitting here selling you a dream of an organisation with an easy glide through. Every day is a challenge. Londoners are facing new and increasing challenges every day, and funders are often focused on ‘value for money’ and straightforward projects with assured success. We are working hard to show funders and partner organisations that real change will come from thinking more progressively, and that we have a collective responsibility to think with a more inclusive, patient approach”

The Equality, Diversity and Inclusivity conference held at RHS Garden Wisley last year, at which Haden was a speaker, began a conversation around what is stopping people from entering the industry, he says. “We would all be wise to look at our unconscious biases and ask ourselves why we think, for instance, that a certain group of people doesn’t have anything to contribute.

“I think the vast majority of people want to change – and need to change. The industry has got a skills gap. We apply for funding to work with schools because we recognise that if we can bring in schoolchildren to this sort of setting and develop their passion for nature and the natural world then, in principle, you’ve got the beginnings of the next environmental gardeners on your hands. If you can inspire children from primary school onwards, then you start them on a journey that may well be a contributor to solving the skills gap.”

As Haden already admits, there’s no one solution to breaking down barriers to entry. But Walworth Garden has a willingness and a determination to help and to ensure that as many people as possible can access a career in horticulture.

Walworth Garden, in collaboration with Michael Faraday Primary School, has been shortlisted for a Pro Landscaper Business Award.