islington, LONDON

In this project, we’re collaborating with The ARC Collective, a community centre in Islington that runs a network of urban gardens and a food bank supporting hundreds of local families. Together, we are co-designing a new community garden in Packington Square, with the goal of expanding food-growing capacity to supply the local food bank, while also cultivating knowledge sharing, space appropriation, a sense of belonging, and stronger community bonds.

This project responds to the urgent need for more accessible green and food-growing spaces in a borough marked by deep social inequality, high levels of food insecurity, and one of the lowest rates of public green space in London. Despite the area’s central location and increasing gentrification, many residents face structural barriers to wellbeing, access to nature, and healthy food.

Our approach goes beyond simply designing a space — we’re interested in co-creating a process where local residents and gardening volunteers are involved not only in imagining the future of the garden, but also in building it together. We see the act of constructing the space as part of the community-building itself: a hands-on way to foster agency, connection, and shared ownership.

Since December, we’ve held four participatory workshops with residents, ARC volunteers, and users of the space. We’re working closely with Hyde Housing Association (which is funding the redesign) and Islington Council to ensure the project integrates community knowledge, responds to real needs, and can be sustained over time.

While engaging participation has presented challenges—especially in a context where time, energy, and trust are often stretched thin—we are slowly building relationships and momentum around a shared vision: a productive, inclusive, and collectively cared-for green space rooted in principles of food sovereignty, ecological justice, and mutual support.

Key outcomes will include a final report on the participatory process, shaped by community input, and a set of reflections on the potentials and limits of participatory urban gardening as a tool for social and spatial transformation.