We are blessed at Canton Uniting Church with a small yet abundant community garden full of vegetables, fruit, herbs, flowers and shrubs. As you may well know, we are preparing for a much bigger garden which will emerge as part of a more extensive development of our building and grounds. We want church members and local residents alike to be part of this exciting journey and for us all to have pride in creating a rich and biodiverse green space for us all to enjoy.
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CANTON GROWING TOGETHER PROJECT – OCTOBER 2026 REPORT
We have recently extended the concept of Canton Growing Together to embrace the whole of our building and garden project. It’s a name that encapsulates not just our green aspirations but our vision of being an open church - open to God, open to each other and open to the community which we serve - in order to show God’s love.
Project aims
• To provide an improved facility that can better serve the community.
• Significantly to reduce our carbon footprint.
Major project-related steps in the last two years
• Planning permission was obtained on 18th August 2025, to demolish the old and energy-inefficient halls and replace them with a much smaller new build and community garden.
• The 25 year old flat roofs over the sanctuary and around the front of the church were resurfaced in 2025 at a cost of £51,000, as an urgent requirement although not directly related to the project objectives.
• A Synod-sponsored heating survey in September 2025 confirmed the huge energy savings from our project but also highlighted opportunities from solar panels and/or a heat pump facility.
• A re-costing of the project was undertaken in March 2026, as a preliminary to seeking grants and other fundraising. This put the total project costs at £1.2 million.
• A professional fundraiser was contracted to support our external fundraising efforts from April 2026.
• From May 2026 onwards we have conducted a community survey, obtaining 250 completed questionnaires to date. We have interviewed partners and other groups with a view to getting qualitative input for the project objectives from outside the church.
• We have started to develop a business plan, which helps to cement our thinking.
• A decision was taken on 6th September 2026 to seek a revision to the Council approved plans, to recognise important changes:
o Provision of an office for two part-time employees for community development and administration.
o Replacing the proposed new foyer that would have had limited use for meetings, with a meeting room and a separate corridor from the southern entrance.
o Repositioning the room that is designated for use by an alcoholic addiction support group, so that they can get better access at all times of day.
o Provision of an air source heat pump, with a view to reducing carbon emissions for the church and new build by around 67%.
• The planning application revision was submitted on 19th October 2026.
Status of fundraising
• Actual/promised funds now total £575,000. Further applications are in progress, including from the Senedd Community Facilities Programme and National Lottery People and Places Fund.
• We have also signed up for the Big Give 2026 Christmas Challenge. We have reached our target ‘pot’ of £10,000 in pledges – we need donations of £10,000 or more to release this match pot. If successful, that will add £20,000 or more to our building fund.
• A dream result from our fundraising would be to have more money than we need, so that we could add solar panels to the project, in addition to the heat pump …………
Help and encouragement
• All who are interested in the project are warmly invited to share in an ‘update’ event at the church on Friday 6th November. Refreshments will be served from 6pm to 6.20pm, during which you will be able to look at drawings of our revised planning. Then a few presentations, including from one of our partners and time for a chat.
• We recognise it would be valuable to continue to seek people’s views on what we are aiming to achieve in Canton, including from outside Canton. If you would like to answer the 5 minute questionnaire, the QR code is at the foot of the Home Page.
• We very much appreciate the support and interest that we have received. If anyone feels they would like to contribute to the Big Give Christmas Challenge, please watch out for the link to the Big Give portal that we will be publishing before 1st December.
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CANTON GROWING TOGETHER NEWS
JUNE 2026
Weeks of rain hampered our efforts to keep the garden under control during late Autumn, Winter and much of the Spring, though the resilience of many of the plants means certainly is not bare! The vegetables and herbs, such as chard, fennel and chives, as well as the yellow raspberries and strawberries, have been particularly prolific. Which it certainly is now! We cropped the yellow raspberries right back and their determination to flourish is clear to see. The delicious fruit will be available to all soon.
Our Garden Goons WhatsApp group has recently been joined by several new residents, so our thanks go out to them. However, most local helpers are informal passers-by. Some people have donated plants for which we are profoundly grateful. This is what we like to encourage – sharing plants as well as ideas. It is true to say that there is a wealth of expertise out there.
Two jobs that have been particularly useful are the construction of a compost heap, made by one of our resident neighbours from disused wooden pallets, and the setting up of a structure for our runner beans. Huge thanks to them. Most of us are not tall or strong enough to undertake some of the jobs. In addition, church members and local people rallied round to water the garden every evening during last summer’s heat wave. And it is happening again! We are truly blessed.
We are now trying to be more organised: meeting as a group at 5.30 on a Friday afternoon. When we get in the swing of the routine, the first 15 minutes will be to agree, over a cuppa, what we are going to do until 6.45. Do join us if you can.
Over the last couple of months, we have been planting an abundance of produce. This includes potatoes, tomatoes, rocket, dwarf French beans, brussels sprouts, chicory, courgettes, parsley, sugar snap peas, lettuce, sweetcorn, beetroot, oriental salad mix, and some bee butterfly wildflower mix. The potatoes have grown fast and are always fun to dig up and find. A bit like a treasure hunt! The other vegetables and herbs are starting their new lives but should start to flourish over the next few weeks. We will let you know when they are ready to harvest and you are welcome to help yourselves. There are already herbs ready for the taking – including mint and fennel. Everyone is welcome to enjoy the ‘fruits’ (ha, ha) of our labours.
Thanks to all of you who have contributed to the garden. Even if it was just for a day, it has helped. And a quick and kind plea to anyone thinking of joining us sometime for a chat and contribution to making our garden plentiful – whether it is weeding, planting, pruning or harvesting. However, all are also welcome to sit, relax and enjoy our small oasis of greenery.
