The Stroke Association launches charity sector’s first online digital garden

In a charity first, the Stroke Association has launched its own online digital garden – Strength in Bloom - to raise vital funds for the charity. The new virtual garden is being supported by the UK’s leading garden centre, Dobbies.

The online platform has been inspired by the charity’s first ever show garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2024, the Garden for Recovery, designed by landscape designer, Miria Harris, which was created to support stroke survivors to achieve their best possible recovery.

The digital version of the garden invites supporters to donate by planting symbolic flowers and trees or selecting a plaque to dedicate to their cherished individual, creating a virtual haven they can visit from anywhere in the world, for years to come.

The virtual garden not only shares some of the visual identity and calming elements of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show garden, it also incorporates sound to enhance the sensory aspect. This online sanctuary translates the charity’s Garden for Recovery into a digital oasis, fostering a community for solace and connection.

Juliet Bouverie OBE, Chief Executive of the Stroke Association, said: “Our first ever virtual garden, Strength in Bloom, is a digital haven filled with the healing power of nature. We’re asking people to dedicate a symbolic flower, tree or plaque to celebrate the resilience of a stroke survivor, or honour the memory of a loved one lost to stroke. Inspired by our Garden for Recovery at the 2024 RHS Chelsea Flower Show, we hope people can share stories of strength, find a sense of tranquillity and also reach a community from anywhere in the world.

“Our digital garden will help us to achieve our ambitious new goal; to reach everyone with stroke support as quickly as possible after their stroke, while also creating a beautiful, lasting legacy.”

David Robinson, CEO at Dobbies Garden Centre, said: “Dobbies has collaborated with the Stroke Association for a number of years as gardening is known to help support people rehabilitating from stroke, as well as improve overall health and wellbeing. Their Strength in Bloom virtual garden is a really inclusive way for everyone to experience the joy of gardens and garden living, and we’re super proud to be involved.”

The inspiration behind the digital garden

The Stroke Association’s Garden for Recovery was designed by critically acclaimed landscape designer Miria Harris, herself a stroke survivor, and sponsored by Project Giving Back, the grant-giving charity that funds gardens for good causes at RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

The garden was shaped by Miria’s experience of stroke and the stories of other stroke survivors, as a place to support and inspire stroke recovery, both physically and mentally. A hopeful, positive space, the garden mirrors the charity’s purpose – to support every stroke survivor to achieve their best possible recovery.

Welcoming and accessible, the garden has been designed as a peaceful, sensory space for recovery. Colour, scent and the sound of water provide soft way-finding for those with additional visual or mobility needs, while interconnected pathways through a contoured landscape acknowledge the difficult road to recovery with its ups and downs.

After being displayed at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show from 21-25 May 2024, the garden has been reconfigured and moved to its permanent location adjacent to the stroke unit at Chapel Allerton Hospital, Leeds, where it will provide a place for connection and rest for stroke survivors and their families.

The digital garden, Strength in Bloom, aims to create a lasting legacy online by bringing the design elements of the physical garden into the digital world.

Over 88,000 people survive a stroke every year in the UK, but surviving a stroke is just the start of a long and traumatic battle to finding their way back to life. Mums, dads, grandparents, young people, even children can be stroke survivors, and the impact of stroke on them and their loved ones can be catastrophic. A stroke can leave survivors unable to move, see, speak, or even swallow.

The Stroke Association is the leading stroke support charity in the UK. From providing vital stroke support services, to funding pioneering stroke research, the Stroke Association relies on fundraising in order to support stroke survivors to achieve their best possible recovery. Currently, the Stroke Association can only reach one third of the survivors who most need the charity’s help.

Juliet Bouverie OBE, Chief Executive of the Stroke Association, adds: “Through tailored, coordinated and empowering stroke support, the Stroke Association helps survivors and their loved ones to achieve their best possible recovery. We provide support that covers every aspect of a survivor’s recovery, so they are not just living to survive, but able to live life again.”

Join us and find #StrengthInBloom today. Visit www.stroke.org.uk/garden/virtual. Due to the garden’s digital features, please be aware that it can take a few minutes to load, especially on your first visit.