Garden design
– is this acted on, or are there a range of deflections, delays, and excuses given for not going outside? This may reveal more about the team members’ own fears, or underlying resistance about going out, including perceptions that the outside is not part of the workspace and they should not go out there.
n Investigate the contradictions when told that something outside does happen, or is allowed, yet clearly this is not the case in reality. An open door policy may exist, for example, but are the doors actually open? If not, why not?
Looking afresh at the outside space The deployment of non-drawing design interventions in the above examples, such as the challenging of the wish list and helping to bring back into conscious awareness the habits that had formed around not going outdoors, were intended not to embarrass the setting but to establish the future conditions (via the care culture) where a new garden design would indeed be an appropriate investment in resources. Building confidence and strengthening
the connectivity between outdoors and indoors are helpful steps to take that are absolutely necessary if the outdoors in general (or a future garden design, should it be needed) is to be naturally engaged with in the longer term. These non-drawing design interventions are akin to being a good listener and observer, deploying warmth, enthusiasm, coaching, coaxing, and, where necessary, gentle challenge to help the setting grasp the value of what lies outdoors, and how that can become an important part of the overall care environment. In other words, the designer can (and should!) ask the ‘awkward’ questions and be the positive and enthusiastic yet ‘critical friend’ advocating for the outside space and aiding the culture change process undertaken by the care setting towards increasingly person-centred care. As outsiders to the care culture, and the subconscious routines and habits on display, we can point out the contradictions, the anomalies, and the things that do not make sense that will help to unblock the fears about and resistances to going outside more regularly.
The value of non-drawing design interventions Deploying non-drawing design interventions are a means of helping the setting to move forward on its culture change journey and
February 2024
www.thecarehomeenvironment.com
Non-drawing design interventions can help care settings address why they are not engaging with their outside space
are preparatory to ensuring any future plan- based design work will represent value for money and good use of resources. As these interventions can be deployed from the very first contact, during the data gathering phase and observations made about the setting’s practices and can be enormously beneficial in shifting a care setting into more advanced practices in a very short period of time, we recommend that the designer costs this work into their charges. While non-drawing design interventions
lay the important groundwork at the culture change level for a future new garden to be embedded successfully into residents’ daily experiences, this may not necessarily be the only outcome. Non-drawing design
interventions can be all that is needed to unlock the practices and beliefs that allow the setting to reappraise and value what they already have outdoors, resulting in greater engagement with the outdoors for residents, their families, and staff members, too. And where physical changes are still needed, the earlier work to address those issues identified, and to match the current capabilities of the setting more closely, ensures an appropriate design brief that will lead to a greater likelihood of longer term engagement by the team and residents alike.
n
References 1 Carroll D & Rendell M. Why don’t we go into the garden? The Journal of Dementia Care, Mar/Apr. 2015
2 Carroll D & Rendell M. Why don’t we go into the garden? The Care Culture Map and Handbook. 2016
3 Carroll D & Rendell M. Why don’t we go into the garden? A Designer Handbook for Creating Actively Used Care Setting Gardens. 2022
Debbie Carroll
Debbie Carroll is an experienced garden designer passionate about gardens being well used and well-loved in both domestic and care environments. Her joint research project with colleague Mark Rendell led to them developing a new approach to working together called ‘relationship-centred design’, writing a series of publications, and their founding of Step Change Design, which Debbie continues to run. These publications support both care settings and designers in creating actively used gardens that enable residents to enjoy the garden freely.
Mark Rendell
Mark Rendell’s aim as a garden designer is simple: to help people use their gardens to the full and to reintroduce them to the amazing and healthful resource that their garden can be. He has a background in health, project management, and training, and writes articles and organises workshops, talks, and presentations about gardening and nature. Mark now focuses primarily on his gardening and design work through The Growing Company based in North Wales, while collaborating from time to time with Debbie on writing projects.
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