A new sensory garden is being created at Cope Foundation in Montenotte, Cork, as part of a collaborative project between the charity, Trigon Hotel group. Cope Foundation is the hotel group’s charity partner for 2021. Hotels in the Trigon group include the Metropole Hotel, Cork International and Cork Airport Hotels.
The garden, which is located on previously unused ground next to Beech Hill Garden Centre, will include features and plants that stimulate the senses through touch, sight, scent, taste and hearing. Volunteers from both Trigon Hotels and Cope Foundation have agreed to tend to and maintain the garden.
Cope Foundation Horticultural Tutor Denis Mangan said:“Our ongoing activities will be of tremendous benefit, allowing for opportunities to engage in physical activity and social interaction. We at Cope Foundation are looking forward to a busy sustainable spring with the growing of fresh healthy organic produce with the Trigon Hotel team.”
The garden will consist of raised beds which have already been constructed and filled with herbs, plants and flowers, with plans to add water features and further developments in 2022.
Team members at Trigon Hotels have raised €11,000 for Cope Foundation and its Ability@Work programme this year, and plans to continue the partnership into 2022. The programme is committed to bringing young people with intellectual difficulties and autism closer to the labour market.
Kathleen Linehan, Strategic Director of HR for Trigon Hotels, said: “We were delighted to be invited to visit Beech Hill Garden Centre and Roots café in Montenotte and during our walkabout we spotted a patch of ground that looked perfect for a sensory garden. It was wonderful to spend a day outside planting with volunteers from both organisations.”
