One day whilst walking through the gardens at SCILL, I could not help but notice that some of the garden beds were looking a little neglected, shrubs needed to be pruned, beds needed weeding and an overall tidy up was needed. As gardening is a hobby of mine I wondered if SCILL could make use of my skills. I enquired about volunteering for them. That was nearly 3 years ago and I still look forward to Thursdays, my gardening day, and can't wait to get there and get stuck in, whether it's pruning the roses, sweeping the car park, scraping up the moss, weeding the beds etc. I think it's because I like getting my hand dirty!

I have met so many interesting people whilst gardening for SCILL. Visitors walking through from the car park stop to say hello, SCILL participants and staff stop to chat and ask for cuttings or advice about their own gardens or plants and I do my best to oblige, though I have to tell them I am self- taught, so therefore don't have all the answers.

You may ask what do people get from volunteering and the answer, for me personally, is simple ; satisfaction in whatever I am doing and gratitude that I am allowed to help and hopefully make a difference, whether it's in people's everyday lives, or in my case, their gardens, where I get a sun tan for free.