A Labour councillor says gardening projects across a town are helping to combat social isolation and deprivation.

Peter Scollard, 50, who represents Northfleet North ward, has been busy creating secret gardens, vegetable planters, and even building a 'talking bench'.

"When we first started there was fly-tipping here, everything was overgrown, there was graffiti in everywhere, anti-social behavior, and it has sort of mellowed right down," he said.

Councillor extols the power of plants

Cllr Scollard began the No Walls Garden project in 2013 in an effort to make Northfleet a nicer place to live.

He said: "People turn around and say, 'oh, it really makes me smile, it makes me feel happy,' especially when it comes to spring and we put all the planters out.

"We've got this theory that if you break one window, someone's going to break the window next to it.

"If you try and make something a little bit nicer, someone's going to take a little bit more care in it."

The outdoor projects have also given the people of Northfleet a better chance to speak to the councillor about problems they may be having.

"It actually works fantastically. You are in your own world, you get to know what's going on," he said.

"You get to cover the issues that people are dealing with."

No Walls Garden was set up as a holistic approach to gardening, hoping to encourage people in the community to interact and help maintain these new green areas.

The latest No Walls Garden project is a 'talking bench' along the high street, which Cllr Scollard hopes will encourage people to sit down and talk to each other.

"We do have an awful lot of social isolation," he said.

"This bench is big enough, you can sit there and you can say hello. And from that, one day you met a stranger, the next day you come along and they're your friend.

"And that's what we want to try and encourage."

Kelly Hall started as a volunteer in 2013 and now runs her own gardening business.

She works alongside the other volunteers and Cllr Scollard, and said fruit vegetable planters along the high street are encouraging people to eat healthier.

"It's an area of high poverty and deprivation and they don't eat very well," she said.

"We planted strawberries along the high street, so when the kids come out of school instead of going to the sweet shop they can eat fresh food as they go along."

The enchanted and secret gardens, situated next to the St Botolph church, offer a quiet space for local residents to relax.

"We've got high-rise flats, so there's no garden space," Kelly said.

"We get a lot of people who just want to sit in a garden and have a nice little chill space, and this is perfect for it."

Since No Walls Garden began, it has worked with ex-offenders, people struggling with unemployment and people with special educational needs.

As part of the project, it offers the opportunity for people to gain landscaping skills and qualifications to help with future employment.

Danny Storey, 30, lives in Northfleet and helps maintain the gardens every week.

He said: "My favourite things about working here are weeding stuff, cleaning stuff, heavy lifting."

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