Tom Stuart-Smith's shed wins Gold at Chelsea Flower Show (video)

The National Garden Scheme Garden designed by Tom Stuart-Smith for the National Garden Scheme which features a fabulous shed and is funded by Project Giving Back has won an RHS Gold Medal at the Chelsea Flower Show.  

Although the garden with its woodland edge planting is lovely, it's the artisan hut - a cleft Green oak structure around a softwood timber frame, lined with beech and oak panelling and with a timber shingle roof - that is the true star of the design. Inside is a York stone floor.

It's designed by architect Ben Stuart-Smith, Tom's son, and was built by furniture maker and woodworker Fenton Scott-Fielder with his colleagues in Bristol. When the show finishes, it will be moved to the new Maggie’s garden at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge for the use of those receiving cancer treatment and their families.

Below, Tom talks about the shed, and the garden, and there's an excellent walk-through:

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New garden privy shed launched at Chelsea Flower Show

Plankbridge is delighting folks at this year's Chelsea Flower Show with its sauna snug which we covered previously on Shedworking here. Joining it on the tradestand AR640 is the company's new Garden Privy, what they describe as "a nostalgic throwback to the world of the Victorian gardener". 

It can be wheeled into position and connected to the mains in the garden, beside a garden office (or elsewhere, e.g. glamping spot). Alternatively, it can be fitted with solar lighting and a compost toilet for use in any remote, off-grid location.

In keeping with the traditional Victorian-style shepherd’s hut, the Garden Privy is mounted on iron wheels and is clad in hard-wearing corrugated iron. It measures 4ft x 4ft and features a small glazed window with oak shutters for privacy.

The Garden Privy was inspired by an outdoor privy that Plankbridge co-founder Jane Dennison remembers from childhood. "My mother had an old red-brick privy in her garden that was covered in rambling roses and the perfect place for her grandchildren to play hide- and-seek in later years. We have a great deal of affection for beautiful old structures like these at Plankbridge. I can’t think of a more fitting place to unveil the new Garden Privy than at RHS Chelsea Flower Show."

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Malvern Garden Buildings offer a premium collection of garden buildings, displayed at 11 UK showsites.

Malvern Garden Buildings launch magazine at Chelsea Flower Show

 

 

If you're heading to RHS Chelsea this week it's worth picking up the first edition of Malvern Garden Buildings' printed Garden Escape magazine, pictured above. It's slim but very nicely produced with sections on The Japanese Art of Imperfections, the RHS Houseplant Studio designers for 2024, an innovative indoor gardening project for women in prison, the latest houseplant and gardening trends, and How to Create a Cocktail Garden. There's also a competition to win all sorts of goodies.

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Friday Finery: Cromarty Firth Men's Shed

In what's been a rollercoaster fo a week for the Scottish Men's Sheds Association (happily ending on a high note), here's a lovely image for our regular Friday Finery slot, the Cromarty Firth Men's Shed who in addition to all their normal activities look after the woodland surrounding their shed to preserve it for their local community.

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False walls in garden offices

Although garden offices are usually pretty compact structures, it's interesting to see the many and varied ways that suppliers work with the space. Here's an example from Cedar Living, a false wall concealing a lavatory and cupboard using acupanel acoustic panelling. And here's what they say about it:

"With the challenge of small spaces, this calls for creative solutions. Inside your garden room, not only can we create little nooks for kitchenettes, but we also introduce false walls, often in acoustic panelling, to maximise every inch of space. These false walls serve a dual purpose: they create separate areas for different functionalities, and they discreetly hide doors leading to a toilet or additional storage cupboards. The illusion of the seamless interior whilst enjoying the convenience of concealed rooms. The advantage of a modern acoustic panelling reduces noise levels and eliminates echoes, whilst adding warmth and appeal within the room."

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Scottish Men’s Sheds Association funding u-turn

Hot on the heels of our post yesterday about the terrible possibility that the Scottish Mens' Sheds Association faced closure by the end of the year, we were delighted to hear that the Scottish Government has, once again, done a u-turn on this vital funding issue.

Welcoming the decision, SMSA CEO Jason Schroeder (pictured top) said: “The government grant in 2016 of £75,000 was an initial start-up grant for the charity which supported, at that time, five Sheds and developing the movement across Scotland. Unfortunately, that amount has never been increased as the movement grew and we immediately sought other grant funders. However, now post pandemic and with men needing more support than ever, we now require £360,000 per annum to deliver our development plans and support to over 200 Sheds across Scotland.

“With the growing and highest male suicide rates in Scotland – out of the whole of the UK – we require the Scottish Government to once and for all fully commit and get behind the most successful men’s health preventative model created in Scotland so the SMSA, the movement and the people of Scotland never end up in this situation again.

“We applaud the First Minister’s financial support statement and welcome talks with the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice Shirley-Anne Somerville MSP to further discuss our vital work through this men’s health and wellbeing model being carried out successfully across Scotland.”

You can watch the issue being raised in the government debate at the start of the video below:

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Wednesday posts are sponsored by Booths Garden Studios, the UK's No.1 supplier of zero maintenance and portable garden studios

Scottish Men's Sheds Association on the brink of closure

Terrible news, as reported in the media that the marvellous Scottish Men's Sheds Association is looking to wind up operations of its 200 sheds and 10,000 members by the end of the year.

According to The Sunday Post, the yo-yo decisions on funding by the Scottish Governement continue. It recently decided again to withdraw funding despite the opposition that erupted the last time they made this decision back in 2022 and were forced to backtrack. Irish and Australian governments keep their own projects fully funded.

Speaking to the newspaper, SMSA chief executive Jason Schroeder, said: “We’ve got enough funding for about nine or 10 months and then we’ll be looking at winding up. We’ll be celebrating our 10th anniversary in October – hopefully we’ll be celebrating rather than closing." 

More than 5,000 people have signed this petition calling on the decision to be reversed. "Now is not the time to abandon and disinvest in this successful men’s health movement that is voluntarily engaging with and reaching men and changing and saving lives," it says. "These volunteers need our support now more than ever as evidenced by the ever-increasing growth in our membership." 

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Malvern Garden Buildings offer a premium collection of garden buildings, displayed at 11 UK showsites.