A blog by Paul Curry, Operations and Compliance Manager, Queen’s Sport.

Launched in early 2024, the Queen’s Sport Allotment is our dedicated staff allotment on campus.

Funded by Queen’s sport with additional support from the Queen’s Green Fund, the allotment is a hands-on demonstration of Queen’s Sport’s commitment to sustainability, offering staff a meaningful way to contribute to and learn about environmentally conscious practices, ensuring the project aligns with the University’s Net Zero Plan.

Located towards the back of the PEC beside the outdoor football pitches, the allotment was developed to provide a designated garden and collaborative space for staff, providing a wide range of benefits both personally and in the workplace.

Personal benefits include a boost in physical health as gardening is a form of low impact exercise, while the access to fresh, organic produce encourages better nutrition. From a health and wellbeing perspective spending time outdoors and nurturing plants helps to reduce stress and anxiety, and additionally the allotment fosters a sense of achievement and belonging from the community aspect of the initiative.

The allotment project promotes collaboration, communication, and camaraderie among staff and provides educational opportunities for staff to learn new skills, from composting to crop rotation, to engaging in a number of educational workshops that are offered as part of the project.

We are also working to enhance biodiversity by focusing on maintaining and enhancing the existing biodiversity in the allotment area, it has provided a wildlife zone for birds and those involved have created a ‘no-dig’ wildflower bed for pollinator insects.

The green space also boasts its own ‘No Mow’ areas; allowing these areas to grow and supports bees, butterflies, moths and other insects by increasing the flowers and nectar they rely on.

Produce being grown on our staff allotment has also been diversified, with plants and vegetables mixed in together to try and increase the number of insects and pollinators, helping plants to grow and thrive.

The positive impact of this project has been remarkable. It’s brought together a large group of staff at Queen’s Sport, many of whom had no prior experience in gardening, to collaborate on something completely new.

Over twenty staff members are actively participating in the project, and that number is steadily growing. A special thanks goes to Paul Wallace and Rachel Vaughan whose dedication and expertise were instrumental in bringing the project to life.

The success of the allotment has been made possible through the invaluable support and collaboration of both internal and external partners. During the design and installation phases, staff received hands-on assistance from Queen’s Estates Directorate’s Gardening and Sustainability teams.

The team down at the allotment have also had the chance to work with The Conservation Volunteers, who have delivered a series of educational workshops for staff focused on soil preparation and understanding growing seasons. The Conservation Volunteers is a UK-based charity that creates opportunities for people to create, improve and care for nature in the green spaces around them.

These partnerships have not only enriched the project but have also helped build a strong sense of community and shared learning.

Find out more and get involved

For more information and if you are interested in getting involved with the allotment, please contact Paul Curry: p.curry@qub.ac.uk.

Paul Curry

Operations and Compliance Manager, Queen’s Sport