New lease of life for Dorothy Clive Garden

Following on from a successful CSR day with Tri-Services, RSM were ready to tackle their second project with the Dorothy Clive Garden.

The Dorothy Clive Garden is a charitable garden trust, set up by Colonel Harry Clive as a place of rest and continued horticultural education for the general public. Located in glorious countryside on the North Staffordshire, Shropshire and Cheshire borders, the garden is both formal and informal, hosting a network of paths that invite the visitor to explore and discover the intimacy and tranquillity of the garden.

RSM had previously used their volunteering days with Dorothy Clive in 2022, so they loved the option to revisit the gardens and see what a difference last year’s volunteering made and be able to create a difference this year.

In 2022, RSM helped build fencing to go around new bee hives within the gardens to ensure younger and even four legged visitors were kept safe from accidentally going too close to the hives. RSM were able to hear about the difference this has made since their first visit.

During their 2023 visit, the team worked across two days to clear an area of overgrown land. This area had been neglected due to a lack of volunteers and was making the area unsafe. The area was full of plants that were taking over, and causing damage to the original plants in that area. RSM worked in the pouring rain to strip the area right back and remove countless bags of weeds!

Dorothy Clive

‘We would like to say thank you to VAST for organising and to RSM for their help in the garden. The volunteers were so jolly and helpful and have made a huge difference in the garden. I am sure it will be much appreciated by visitors throughout the year ahead. Please call again.” Kathryn, Curator.

Quotes from RSM Staff:

• Matthew: “it’s been great to volunteer and help out. Even in the torrential rain, we battled on! It’s amazing to see the difference we’ve made in a few short hours”.
• Jorden: “I love using my volunteer days because I love helping the community, wherever that will be. It’s a nice break away from the office and having some variety from my day job! I just love the reward and meeting different people”.
• Jorden/Jess/Meg: “You can gain a new perspective. It’s important to give back and make a difference. It’s great to network with your colleagues – including singing in the rain! You definitely learn new skills and find out more about your community!”
• John: “It’s great to get out of the office, find out more of what happens in your community.”
• Jess: “It’s great to gain that insider knowledge on how charities are run. Normally, you’d visit Dorothy Clive, walk around and leave. Now, I understand all the hard work that goes on behind the scenes”.
• Klaudia: “I came last year to volunteer at Dorothy Clive and loved it so I jumped at the chance to volunteer again. It’s so relaxing to come here and do some gardening and get break away from a stressful job.”