Bury Set to Flourish with Launch of the ‘Right to Grow’ Initiative

A groundbreaking initiative, ‘Right to Grow’, is launching in Bury, encouraging communities to transform public spaces into vibrant places by growing fresh food. This exciting new community growing initiative, detailed on the Incredible Edible Prestwich website, aims to bring residents together, nurture local environments, and boost health and wellbeing across the borough.

Growing offers many benefits, such as the joy of sharing freshly grown produce, improved mental and physical wellbeing through activity in nature, and strengthening of community bonds.

A lack of available land close to people’s homes can be an obstacle to more people growing.

To help address this issue, Incredible Edible Prestwich and District, Lancashire Wildlife Trust, Bury Council’s Planning, Parks & Countryside, Grounds Maintenance, Public Health and the Bury Voluntary, Community and Faith Alliancehave all come together to look at planning, licensing, and to create a ‘food map’ of the Bury area which shows established community growing sites and potential future growing spaces.

The ‘Right to Grow’ scheme seeks to enable individuals and community groups to identify and cultivate unused public land for food growing. By making it easier to access land, the initiative seeks to foster a closer connection between people and the food they eat, while also enhancing biodiversity and greening urban areas.

The ‘food map’ is now available to view, with various sites throughout Bury having already been identified as potential growing locations. Residents are also encouraged to get involved, via the website, to start growing food and increase Bury’s ‘Right to Grow’ footprint.

Councillor Alan Quinn, Bury Council’s Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Operations, has championed this and many initiatives across Bury which enhance the local environment and community wellbeing. He said, "Community food growing is a positive benefit to Bury, and I’d encourage groups and individuals to get involved in the project.”

Jon Hobday, Bury’s Director of Public Health, also commented on the significant advantages such a project can bring to the borough. “Right to Grow will support more people to access healthy and nutritious food, share knowledge and provide momentum for our good food movement in Bury .”

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See the notes for editors on page 2

Notes for editors:

• Right to Grow is a programme for communities to grow more food on public land. Led by the local council, it involves maintaining a food map showing sites that are suitable for growing. The programme is led by Incredible Edible UK, and has gained broad support from local community groups right up to the House of Lords. It is also supported by multiple councils, with Hull City Council passing the first Right to Grow motion and policy in 2023.
• Residents can email iepad.volunteers@gmail.com with their suggestions for potential growing sites.
• Incredible Edible Prestwich are a local community group growing food in public spaces in and around Prestwich. They are working on establishing the Right to Grow in Bury.
• Bury Council is the local authority of the Metropolitan Borough of Bury in Greater Manchester. It provides the majority of local government services and is a member of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.
• Alan Quinn is a Labour Councillor in Prestwich and is the Cabinet Member for the Environment and Climate Change.
• Jon Hobday is Director of Public Health at Bury Council and is responsible for health and wellbeing throughout the borough.