For many families supporting a person with disability, finding community activities that are genuinely meaningful can be difficult.

Not everyone enjoys conventional group activities or centre-based programs. Some people thrive when they have practical tasks, clear routines, outdoor space and the opportunity to apply themselves to something meaningful over time.

This is the central focus of Nadscare GROW, a new inclusive horticulture project now being established at Blatherskite Park in Alice Springs.

Nadscare is honoured to have been awarded this opportunity; the Market Garden will stand as a permanent pillar of our work—bringing meaningful jobs and real learning to the participants we cherish and care for

This exciting new project will comprise two very different spaces:

At the entrance to Blatherskite Park, the Show Garden will become a highly visible community garden incorporating native and culturally appropriate plantings, bush foods, sensory planting, accessible pathways and gathering areas.

The much larger Main Garden will provide the productive heart of GROW, with opportunities for vegetable growing, propagation, planting, irrigation, harvesting, sorting, packing and practical skill development.

During National Carers Week, Nadscare particularly acknowledges the parents, partners, siblings, relatives and friends who provide unpaid care and support across Central Australia.

Families often play an enormous role in helping a person discover the environments, activities and relationships in which they can flourish. Nadscare hopes GROW will eventually provide those families with another meaningful choice.

The gardens are still being established, so we’re speaking with Coordinators of Support, disability organisations, allied health professionals, families and interested members of the community about what would make GROW genuinely useful and welcoming.

We're asking Alice Springs and Central Australia to help us in building the right Garden for our community.