Gorgie War Memorial Hall garden project
Gorgie, Edinburgh, EH11 2QU
The site
Gorgie War Memorial Hall is situated on Gorgie Road and is an old church, which was opened in 1887 and affectionately known as the “little church in the field”. The building was bought by the Edinburgh Corporation, now City of Edinburgh Council and has since seen many community uses by a wide variety of groups. It is presently a community centre managed by Community Learning and Development.
The hall inside is utilised by a range of community groups providing a varied programme of activities and social and learning opportunities. The building comprises the hall, a kitchen, office and toilets. The building has a garden, which is full of promise and we hope to develop it to its full potential. It is the centre’s main focal point as it faces directly onto the main street and is well used in the summer months.
The project
The garden is a great asset for the hall, in an area of Edinburgh notable for its lack of greenspace. The garden is fenced off and as such offers a safe play area for children, and potential for many other uses. The memorial hall would like to develop the garden so that it can be more fully utilised for a variety of purposes, while also being more attractive for wildlife.
Work required to develop the garden includes the following activities:
The removal of some shrubs and their replacement with new varieties that will offer more year-round interest and also provide better habitat for wildlife, particularly birds and insects;
The constructing of large raised beds which will offer opportunities for service users to engage in horticultural activities, including vegetable growing;
The planting of a few new trees and shrubs and the creation of an attractive willow structure.
