A garden is a magical place. And in a school in an inner city location, it is especially precious. Boutcher C of E Primary, located in Bermondsey in South London, has a large garden. It is hidden from a busy road by a large billboard. It’s advertising messages shout at the passing motorists to ”Buy this!” or to “Drive that!” “Invest in this!” It is in this environment that a garden can make a big difference - as a haven from all of the noise and acquisitiveness of city life.

I have left the solitary confines of my studio many times to get involved in residencies. There is a great freedom in following my own thoughts through to the creation of a body of work and eventually to an exhibition. But there is something which working with a community gives me which I am drawn to periodically. The fact that I can help others to touch their own creativity and leave a lasting mark of that process gives me a special kind of satisfaction. And never more than when working with children.

I was first introduced to Rose Marie Lowe, deputy headteacher of Boutcher School, by Phiippa Beagley of Southwark Arts Forum. I had already worked with children on many artists residencies, and I had developed a personal working method in the projects I had been involved with. I felt that it was very important to develop a lasting and visible product as a result of these projects. Sometimes they have been permanent sculptures, sometimes a published book or a video, and sometimes they have been an environmental change to the community.

Rose Marie and I found a harmony of intention, and we formed a strong partnership. Her aims - to unleash the childrens creativity through workshops with an artist, and to use the ideas generated to develop the school garden - were in perfect sympathy with my own working method.

Together, we set to work - clarifying our ideas, writing proposals, searching out funding and partners. And so Germinate was born. In the end, we did accomplish all of our original aims. However, it occurred to us that one reason we were able to succeed was that we have both have had a great deal of experience - in education, in artist residencies, in environmental projects. And it also seemed to us that there might be other organisations out there - schools, community groups, charities - which might find our own experience on Germinate useful and instructive.

The Germinate book grew out of this desire to share our experience. It is a document of our environmental project at Boutcher C of E Primary School. It is also a “how to” manual. Perhaps some of the techniques we have used to incorporate the childrens’ ideas into permanent form will inspire your own creative ideas. Perhaps the step by step guide will be helpful for those who have loads of creative ideas, but need to see how those ideas can be developed into a finished project.

The trickling sound of
water over stones,
Listening to the swaying
Of the old willow tree in the breeze
The colourful flowers,
Surrounding the wildlife pond
Home to many creatures
The unpredictable shapes of the clouds.

Yetunde Yusuf