Jody is a community gardener who has trained and worked at public realm sites across London. She is committed to sustainable approaches to gardening and food growing, and to inclusive sessions open to all. As we head into autumn, she is looking forward to joining the team of staff and amazing volunteers in the garden, learning from nature and each other.

Charlene is passionate about engaging children with the natural world. After years of working as a teacher in local primary schools, she became an environmental educator, developing programmes for getting children out of the classroom and into the outdoors. Through her masters in Education for Sustainable Development, she learned the value of giving children first-hand experience of the world around them.

Charlene is a champion for things that creep and crawl. She loves when she can encourage kids to overcome their aversion to minibeasts – when children go from squealing with fear to squealing with delight. She wants every young visitor to the greenhouses to go away with a greater appreciation of the wildlife on their doorstep and the green spaces around them.

As well as working at the gardens, she is a learning volunteer at the Natural History Museum facilitating interactions with specimens in this historic collection. She enjoys bike rides in the countryside and often rocks up to work transporting education resources in her cargo bike. Charlene works Monday – Thursday.

Kirsty is an artist and educator who has been with BPCG for over a year working with SEN schools and early years. She loves how abundant the gardens are to teach among and with, and how they transform through the seasons, giving with each new stage.

She is also a curious cook, a qualified yoga teacher, finds freedom on her bike, and is often found gleaning from the streets of South East London.

Steph started volunteering with BPCG in May 2020 and has been a member of the propagation team growing house plants, and a designer of the seating circle border. She completed a Level 2 diploma in work-based Horticulture at Walworth Garden.

Before coming to the Greenhouses Steph worked in theatre for over 10 years in a variety of different roles including managing hires, box office and events as well as on stage as an actor/musician.

Steph is excited to be facilitating the events and activities happening at the Greenhouses! She works full time, usually Monday to Friday, but also manages the Sunday gigs.

Georges has served on boards of different organisations, including Sutton Community Farm, and two social enterprises providing safe toilets to low-income communities in Ghana and Haiti. His role has mainly focused on helping organisations scale their impact while achieving financial sustainability. Since moving to Tulse Hill in 2020, he has been enjoying volunteering with the compost team at BPCG.

Ian has lived near the greenhouses since moving into the area in 2019. Growing up in a gardening family, he was often found lending a hand in his grandfather’s garden and greenhouse. He has a keen interest in cooking and volunteers in making produce for the shop when he can. He is a chartered accountant and became a trustee in 2022.

Verena has been volunteering with BPCG for about 10 years. Initially chipping in with whatever task needed doing, Verena helped to replant the herb garden in 2015 and has been looking after this space ever since. Keen to support the charity and its community at this critical moment, Verena hopes to assist staff and fellow trustees with the running of the charity – ranging from helping out at events to reviewing health & safety procedures.

As a volunteer, she would like to develop the herb garden further, unlocking its potential by promoting the use of herbs via BPCG’s activities. Verena currently works as a manager at a large national museum. She became trustee in 2022.

Deborah has over 10 years of experience in digital marketing, social media and content creation. She is well-versed in establishing online communities, collaborating with influencers, and curating digital media strategies. Deborah has previously crafted and implemented marketing strategies for The Royal Society of Arts (RSA), IKON Gallery and Skarstedt.

She is passionate about fostering togetherness and collaboration among different communities. Therefore, she volunteers extensively at several small Lambeth based charities. She also loves spending time tending to her garden, whether its watching seeds sprout into vibrant blooms or gathering up leaves.

She thoroughly enjoys painting, pottery, photography, international cinema, manga and dabbling in culinary arts.

Jamie is a lifelong believer in the importance of bringing together green and urban spaces, having grown up in the world’s first Garden City. He now lives by Brockwell Park.

He became a trustee in 2024 and hopes to help the charity maintain and share the benefit of these beautiful gardens, as a place of connection with nature and our community.

Jamie works in government, where he is an advocate for designing policy, programmes and services around the needs of those who use them

Kate was Director from 2016 until 2022 and played an enormous part in helping the charity to become what it is today by fundraising, renovating and developing the site, expanding our events and workshop programmes and our production of retail products. Before working at BPCG, Kate worked in Fairtrade.

Since 2022, Kate has pursued her life long passion for horticulture and is working as a self employed gardener in South London. She still organises Gigs at the Greenhouses and cooks for BPCG too.

Chris has been gardening for 40 years and his horticultural interests have been many and varied over that time. An adventurous gardener by nature, he was converted to exotics in 1993 by Christopher Lloyd and been growing Cannas, Bananas and Gingers ever since. He is the architect of the charity’s 2015 climate awareness planting – the Hot! Border.

He was elected as a trustee in 2015 and to the Chair from 2018-22 where he led the charity’s Barn project, individual giving development and retail development.