The National Lottery's Breathing Places Fund aims to help change people's environment. Local organisations in Nottinghamshire are being encouraged to apply to get grants - from £300 to £10,000 - to create havens at the heart of the county's towns or city. Similar funding has already helped many groups improve their area... Groundwork, Newark Action Group, St Anns Allotments, Hockerton Housing Project , Sherwood Environmental Village, Rushcliffe Borough Council and Ashfields Womens Centre are just a few of the organisations who have benefitted. One scheme that's really taken off since it received Lottery funding is the Arkwright Meadows Community Garden. Arkwright Meadows Community Garden (Nottingham) Where there were once old washing machines, mangled bicycles and mouldy sofas, now lie sunflowers, brightly painted murals and organic vegetables. The transformation of a former inner city fly-tipping hotspot into a community resource has now been completed.
 | | The Arkwright Meadows Community Garden |
Lying on a patch of waste ground between two primary schools, the garden was formerly a disused playing field and seen locally as an unattractive dumping ground for rubbish. Now it is used for the benefit of the Meadows community to grow flowers, fruit, vegetables and plants using the outside plot and the onsite polytunnel. It's not just local children who benefit from the project. The gardens also provide an opportunity for local people to grow their own produce and learn about gardening from the community gardener / educator. Children from the two adjoining schools helped to design the layout with the help of local artists. The children have even helped with the planting and painting of the murals. How to apply Find out more about BBC Breathing Places and how to apply for the National Lottery's Breathing Places Fund... | 
