Across three sites, our volunteers work together to grow fruit, veg and flowers on one and a half acres of cultivated land.

Windmill Hills Centre, Bensham, Gateshead

The Comfrey Project’s headquarters is the Windmill Hills community garden in Gateshead.

The garden changes with the seasons and throughout the year you can see crops like the more familiar sweetcorn, onions and broad beans growing alongside leafy couve galega, bilolo, rue and bissap, as many of our participants choose to grow crops native to their homelands.

It’s a place which is buzzing with activity and also buzzing with bees, which live in our five beehives and are looked after by a qualified beekeeper and his assistants. Wildflowers and a pond provide food and habitats for the bees and other wildlife.

As well as the garden, Bensham is also home to our headquarters building, which is leased to The Comfrey Project by Gateshead Council. This is where we hold workshops and events, and where our staff are based.

This space is also a community resource, with local groups holding a range of activities, and our volunteers helping to manage the building.

When you visit, be sure to take a look at the jobs board which lists all the current tasks – there is always some veg to harvest or some weeds to pull up.

Moorside Allotments, Fenham, Newcastle upon Tyne

Our Moorside allotment is the first, and original, allotment of The Comfrey Project, where our story began almost 20 years ago. Sessions at this allotment are focused on refugees and people seeking asylum in Newcastle. It is also shared with our friends at Freedom from Torture, who provide dedicated therapeutic horticulture sessions for survivors of torture.

Whinneyfield Allotments, Walkergate, Newcastle upon Tyne

Our Walkergate allotment is almost entirely volunteer-run and provides a progression route for those who are ready to use their gardening skills more independently.