The Worshipful the Mayor, Councillor David Longstaff, accompanied by the Mayoress his partner Ms Gillian Griffiths, performed a ribbon cutting ceremony at Rosa Morison on 28 July 2016 and declared the new sensory garden officially open. The Chair of The Barnet Group, Terry Rogers, welcomed the Mayor and thanked him for attending.
Rosa Morison is a day service within Your Choice (Barnet) and supports adults with profound and multiple learning disabilities. The sensory garden has been a dream for service users and staff at the service, and the funds to make this dream come true were raised by the charity Friends of Rosa Morison and by a successful application to The Barnet Group’s Innovation Fund. The garden was brought to life by volunteers from schools across Barnet participating in the National Citizen Service’s initiative, the Challenge.
Terry Rogers said: “What they’ve done is remarkable. They’ve completely transformed the outside space. This imaginative project was only possible because of the interest and commitment of the local community who wanted to engage with people with multi-sensory needs; a local builder who constructed the walkways and the teenagers who raised money for the planting – and of course the dedicated staff.”
Speaking about his impressions, Councillor David Longstaff said: “The garden is relaxing and tranquil. It’s wonderful that service users can now enjoy the safe and lovely outside area of the building.”