A celebrated garden has officially found a new home in Glasgow.
The 2024 RHS Chelsea Flower Show’s Best in Show, now named the Malcolm Family Forest Bathing Garden, has been officially opened at The Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice in Bellahouston Park.
Designed by Ula Maria for Muscular Dystrophy UK, the garden was made possible through the support of Project Giving Back, a charitable organisation that funds gardens for good causes at RHS Chelsea and helps relocate them to communities across the UK after the show.
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Rhona Baillie OBE, chief executive at The Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice, said: “We’re truly delighted to provide a permanent home for the Malcolm Family Forest Bathing Garden and know that it will make a real difference to our patients, their families and our local communities.
“The whole design of The Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice is focussed around bringing the ‘outdoors inside’.
“We believe in the therapeutic benefits of safe and accessible gardens for people and this incredible and unique garden complements the wonderful outdoor areas we already have available.
“Our care is all about helping people to live as fully and as well as they can to the end of their lives, however long that may be – looking after their physical needs but also their emotional, social and spiritual wellbeing.
“It’s a privilege to host a ‘Best in Show’ garden in Glasgow and we’d like to say a huge thank you to both Muscular Dystrophy UK and the garden funders Project Giving Back for making this possible, as well as The Malcolm Group for helping to transport the garden.
“We are delighted to recognise the significant support the Malcolm family has shown to the hospice for many years by naming it after them.”
Following display at the Flower Show, the garden was carefully packed up and transported more than 400 miles to Glasgow in five articulated lorries, supplied by The Malcolm Group.
Volunteers cared for the garden while land was cleared at the hospice to prepare for its installation.
Andrew Malcolm, chief executive of The Malcolm Group, said: “We were delighted to continue our long-standing support of The Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice by assisting with the transportation and delivery of the garden from London to Glasgow.
“Supporting organisations that make such a meaningful difference within local communities is extremely important to The Malcolm Group and to the Malcolm family personally.
“We are especially proud that the garden has been named in our honour and would like to sincerely thank the hospice for this recognition.
“It is a privilege to play a small part in this project and we hope the garden will be enjoyed by patients, families and the local community for many years to come.”
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Andy Fletcher, chief executive of Muscular Dystrophy UK, said: “As a charity, we always knew that having a garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show was about far more than that week alone.
“Seeing the Forest Bathing Garden take shape in its permanent home at The Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice over the last couple of years has been really special and we hope it will provide a peaceful space that everyone can enjoy.
“The intention was always that the garden would go somewhere that would benefit people living with neuromuscular conditions, as well as the wider community.
“We believe the hospice is the perfect place as it provides care and support for those affected by life-limiting conditions, helping people to achieve the best quality of life; and Muscular Dystrophy UK is delighted to provide support alongside the staff there.”
Glasgow City Council said: “We are very, very pleased to have played a part in bringing this wonderful therapeutic space to Glasgow.
“The council has long supported the hospice so they can provide specialist care and support to people at times of great need.
“By donating a small corner of Bellahouston Park to the hospice, this award-winning garden can become a place where patients and families can find comfort and a sense of wellbeing.”
The garden is open to hospice patients and their families during the week, and to the public at weekends.
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