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Start in Manchester (Manchester Mental Health & Social Care NHS Trust)
Inner Word Garden
Designer: Start in Manchester
Sponsor: Manchester Mental Health & Social Care Trust
Contractor: Start in Manchester
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Inspired by a Zen garden of contemplation, this artist-made sculptural feature garden mixes subtle, restrained planting with the sharp, brittle surfaces of slate chippings and gravel. Both the plants and chippings frame a bed of cobbles in which 100 hand-made ceramic pebbles nestle. Each pebble has a word inscribed on its surface.
The words describe our inner worlds of mood and feeling, and the way that life events affect us for good or ill. They show how we can move through a period of emotional distress, and emerge the other side with renewed hope and know-how to keep ourselves well.
The garden is unique, moving and inspiring because it has been made by people who have learned to care for their emotional health, after a period of serious mental ill health, through involvement in creative activities such as gardening and art.
The feature has been built by Start in Manchester, an award-winning NHS mental health service that uses art and gardening to help people improve, maintain and protect their mental well-being. Part of Manchester Mental Health & Social Care Trust, Start is widely recognised as a leader in its field.