Horatio’s Garden is a pioneering organisation driving the conversation around why gardens are a critical part of NHS provision. They build and run extraordinary gardens in specialist NHS spinal injury centres and are recognised as being an essential part of the rehabilitation pathway.
On average, people spend between three to nine months in these specialist centre often far from home. They are 56% more likely to experience mental health issues with a fourfold increased risk of suicide.
Every aspect of Horatio’s Garden support is evidence-based with proof that being in the garden improves mental and physical health, distraction from pain, vitamin D levels, sleep and long-term economic activity.
Horatio’s Garden is an ambitious charity looking to expand its reach and working with the NHS to improve its estate. Its founder Dr Olivia Chapple has now been recognised with an OBE for exceptional services to charity and an RHS Queen Elizabeth Medal, the highest honour for contribution to horticulture.
The gardens now support 73% of people after a spinal injury. The charity’s mission is to open gardens in all 11 NHS specialist centres to ensure that no-one has to go through a life changing spinal injury and spend months in hospital without being able to use a Horatio’s Garden.
It costs £150,000 a year to support each garden every year, working hard all year round to support people with spinal injury. Horatio’s Garden’s life-changing work depends on public support and this year they become a partner of The Syncona Foundation’s for the first time.
- Every 2 hours someone sustains a spinal injury in the UK
- Horatio’s Gardens are present in 8 out of 11 NHS spinal injury centres
- >22,000 people benefited from the gardens in 2023/4
- 100% [of patients] report improved wellbeing after being in the gardens
“A spectre of depression sits on my shoulder every day. The garden is the one place it lifts. It is my green 'pill'. It has allowed me to see there is a future and that it is a one I want to be a part of.”
Archer’s story
“In December 2023, I was diagnosed as an incomplete paraplegic. Suddenly, my life felt like it had come to a screeching halt. While my friends were finishing their A Levels and making plans for the future, I was stuck in hospital, my world shrinking.
I was transferred to the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital. That’s when I first heard about Horatio’s Garden.
I could feel the calmness it offered. Rain or shine, it was my escape; a breath of air outside the constant hum of the hospital.
The team at Horatio’s Garden knew how important it was for me to feel like myself again, so they set up a desk in one of the garden pods, where I could study for my A Levels.
It wasn’t easy, staying focused, especially on the days I was exhausted from rehab, but there was something about that space – the fresh air, the openness – that made it easier.
When Spring came, the garden started to come alive, the bulbs pushing through the soil, the flowers bursting into bloom. It felt like the world was waking up and so was I.
If you’ve never visited a Horatio’s Garden, all I can say is this: it’s a special place.
It’s not just a garden, it’s a lifeline.
Being in the garden was more than just being outside. It was a release, a break from the hospital environment. It gave me a sense of freedom I didn’t know I needed.
The garden helped create a sense of community and the people I met will never be forgotten.
Now I’m studying mechanical engineering at the University of Leeds. I missed most of my year 13, but I still managed to sit my A Levels and get into university.
But no matter how far I’ve come, I’ll never forget Horatio’s Garden and what it gave me when I needed it most.”