In March this year, the residents of Norman Street, Middleton, approached TNG in Oldham for assistance to convert a recently acquired piece of land into a space where residents could meet, relax and socialise.

Project Supervisors Steve Cartledge and Chris Stead headed a team of TNG customers who were on the Community Task Force programme, which provides 18-24 year olds with the opportunity to gain work experience while giving back to the community, to carry out the project.

The land had previously been derelict so the first phase of the project involved groundwork, removing unwanted debris, clean the area and level the ground. A number of the team were working with tools that were previously unfamiliar to them, so Chris and Steve demonstrated the proper use of tools and observed their working practices, meaning that the team were acquiring new skills as they went along.

The second phase of the project was to build raised flower and vegetable beds which gave participants the opportunity to take part in the measuring, calculating and cutting of materials, using a variety of handtools including hammers, saw, screwdrivers and cordless electrical tools. Following this, the ground was prepared and the team were shown how to lay concrete flags. The final touches were added and the team got to put into practice skills they had learnt whilst building the growing beds, by building a gate and fence, giving access to the area for the residents.

The project took approximately three weeks to complete and on average there were four to six CTF customers working on the project at any one time. One example of those individuals who benefitted from the project was Adam, 19, from Oldham. He said "TNG has given me the chance to take part in a project that has given me new skills and practical experience. Working on this project gave me the chance to learn how to lay turf, the opportunity to build a fence and paint it - these are things I have never done before. I would like to learn more skills that will be useful to me in the future and gain experience that I can show on my CV."

Another TNG customer from the CTF programme who worked at the Norman Street Gardens is Dwayne, 18, from Oldham. Dwayne studied at Oldham College where he achieved qualifications in Maths, English and Joinery, and gained his CSCS card. He said "TNG gave me the opportunity to put into practice what I studied at college. On this project, I learnt how to lay flags, which I’ve never done before. I also picked up tips on how to make cement, which I could do before - but now I can do it better!"

As well as providing the opportunity for many young people to develop and improve a range of skills which they can use in the future, the project has also please local residents who now benefit from the communal gardens that the team have created. On behalf of the residents of Norman Street, Ms Davina Unsworth wrote to the team, saying "On behalf of the local residents of Norman Street I would like to offer our utmost thanks for the work carried out by your team in creating a marvellous garden. You have created a fantastic raised planter for flower and shrubs that will be so easy to maintain, and your team built a wonderful vegetable bed for growing our own fruit and veg. The team carried out the work in an extremely professional manner. I had some concerns about using such a young workforce however they were completely unfounded - they were extremely hardworking, polite and showed respect for where they were. They were shown several different skills from laying flags to making a gate and seemed to genuinely get something out of the experience. Once again I want to pass on all our thanks for the time and hardwork your team put into creating this garden and hope they feel justly proud of what they have created."