Constituency question

April 6, 2022

Tania MAXWELL (Northern Victoria) (12:41): (1745)

My constituency question is to the Minister for Health (Hon. Martin Foley MP) on behalf of the volunteers at Wangaratta Community Garden.

The Wangaratta Community Garden was established in 1993, and it has relied on volunteers to bring together gardeners from diverse backgrounds of different abilities and ages who share an enjoyment of growing affordable and healthy produce. The evidence is growing that the relationship between gardening, mental health benefits and community resilience is strong.

Wangaratta Community Garden has room to welcome more but desperately needs funding for a full-time gardener and manager. Mary Daly and Eric Bittner are Wangaratta Community Garden’s co-ordinators. They are tireless, generous volunteers of their time and fierce advocates for the importance of community connectedness and personal wellbeing that come from the garden. However, the future of the garden cannot rely on volunteers alone.

My question is: will the minister consider funding $200,000 towards a garden manager and ensure that it can successfully continue to support the wellbeing of those people in Wangaratta who continue to utilise this market garden?