A PROJECT in The Friary aims to sow the seeds of community and creativity by involving residents in the development of a new kitchen garden.

Work is just beginning on The Friary Community Garden with residents being invited to grow their own food, eat more healthily and become more involved in the physical environment.

Gary Lamont from Foragers Farm, the company leading the project, said: "The whole idea is to bring the community together in firstly building the garden and then helping to maintain it and having a nice space to spend time in.

"Over the last few weeks we have been working with the organisation Anybody Can Cook, doing food classes in The Friary community centre and helping residents keep to a budget.

"The kitchen garden follows on from that - we will look at growing vegetables such as leeks, tomatoes and onions, as well as flowers.

"We also want it to be a nice space for people to come to and relax with space for barbecues and a den for children to play in - at the moment there isn't really a focal point on the estate."

As part of the project, Gary is planning to take residents on a roadtrip across the county visiting two or three different community gardens such as the Swindon Secret Garden for inspiration.

Having previously worked for Wiltshire Wildlife Trust's Food Champions programme, Gary set up Foragers Farm, a non-profit social enterprise, in 2015.

Based in Wylye, the company seeks to demonstrate the benefits of community gardening, providing a natural retreat in the middle of a built-up, urban environment.

The Friary Community Garden has received funding from both Wiltshire Council and Salisbury City Council.