Nick Lee Memorial Garden opens in King's Lynn

King's Lynn is the latest EEAST base to have developed part of their outdoor space into a wellbeing garden for staff, which has been dedicated to the memory of a much-loved colleague.

The garden was planned and created by Keely Bishop, associate ambulance practitioner.  

Keely said, ‘Initially, I felt it would be nice to improve the outdoor space we had at King’s Lynn and make it somewhere for people to sit and eat on their break, but the more I spoke with people about the idea the more I realised how important this area could be for staff to use for a bit of escapism if only for a little while on their breaks. 

‘From there, I started designing the area and pricing up how much this might cost and with the help of Paul Collins (AGM) and Nick Cason (GM) set about applying to use charitable funds. Travis Perkins and Dobbies also donated to the garden and our local men’s shed group made some planters for us to use. It all came together in the end and the Make Ready team are helping to keep the garden nice and watered now it is finished.   

‘As a finishing touch we decided to name the garden “The Nick Lee Memorial Garden” after a much-loved colleague who passed away recently.  

‘It has taken a lot of work, but I think if it helps just one person with their mental health or improves someone’s mood that day it was totally worth it! So many more people are using the area for meal breaks, to sit in when then just need to reflect on things or just to water some plants.’ 

Paul Collins, King's Lynn AGM, said: ‘I am very proud of Keely and the efforts she has put into making this garden a reality. It now looks nicer that I felt it ever could and I have seen it used every day since it has been finished. It’s really important that we do all we can to improve morale and mental health within the trust.'

 

Charity effort

Enhancing the Trust’s outdoor spaces to give colleagues a chance to unwind, has been a recent focus for the East of England Ambulance Service Charity. The ability to have a nice space to sit outside, in the fresh air, even for a few minutes can help improve anyone’s day. The Charity has helped to support a number of wellbeing gardens across the Trust, providing staff and volunteers with an area for relaxation, reflection and respite with volunteers, like Keely, giving up their own time to support these projects for colleagues.

Using charitable funds in your area

Charitable funds have also been used by several departments to improve their outdoor and indoor environment, and are accessible to all EEAST colleagues, whether frontline or support services. If your station or office would like to utilise charitable funds to enhance your station, office or breakout room please contact charitablefunds@eastamb.nhs.uk to find out more or visit Charitable fund.

This is all possible, thanks to the generosity from donations, legacy gifts and grants which enable us to support our staff, volunteers and local communities in ways above and beyond what NHS funding can ordinarily provide. The East of England Ambulance Service Charity is proud to support the staff, volunteers and local communities in EEAST.

Published 21st June 2023