Getting a fresh start in the gardens at Kew

Tucked away behind the Victorian Palm House at Kew Gardens in west London, a quiet allotment has been coming back to life with the arrival of spring and the help of one of its volunteers.

Jerry Spencer once worked as a gardener but after losing his home, he spent six years living on the streets, struggling with alcohol and drug addiction.

"I mean, I was drinking a lot, mostly all day long, and evening time as well," he said. "And then, yeah, that's when the drugs come out. So I was doing crack and heroin as well."

During the Covid lockdowns, he was offered a hotel room in Putney.

It was there that he signed up for a course through the charity Shepherd's Star and took the trip to Kew Gardens that sparked the former gardener's passions.

The Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew date back to 1759 and are a Unesco World Heritage Site, that run with the help of some 700 volunteers.

"There was a row of like, tulip trees. And she went, 'Oh yeah, there's the tulip trees.' And then out of the blue I just said, 'Oh, Liriodendron tulipifera.' And I'm like, God, I remembered something in Latin," he said.

Jane Rogers, who was the member of Kew Gardens staff who showed him around that day, said: "We've got some people here who have been homeless or had mental health issues, or people that are still going through medical things.

"But they're all people who are supremely helpful and empathetic and just loveliest people on Earth."

The allotment where Mr Spencer now regularly volunteers is in a quiet corner of the 132-hectare gardens and is tended by people from all walks of life.

Desiree Shepherd, co-founder of Shepherd's Star, said Mr Spencer came through the charity's explore programme - a six-week course focused on building confidence and skills.

"We rely on referral agencies," she explained.

"Most of our referrals come in from the Jobcentre, DWP. But then we have quite a number... I think it's 40% of our participants over the three years we've been running the programme come from a drug and alcohol addiction. Twenty-five percent come from a homeless background."

Ms Shepherd said about 86% of those helped by her charity go on to further study, training or volunteering, while a smaller number move straight into work.

"We have this vision of a world where people are connected, they're valued and they are a contributing member of society," she said.

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