Green skills are in alarming decline in Britain, according to the director general of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). Despite the horticulture industry contributing about £9bn to the UK economy and employing around 300,000 people, 70% of businesses in the sector say they struggle to fill vacancies and 83% put this down to the poor perception of horticulture in schools and colleges, according to the RHS.
But at the foot of the South Downs in East Sussex, one institute has found a way to combat the skills crisis by connecting young people with horticulture in new and inspiring ways. Established in 1919, Plumpton College is one of the leading centres for land-based education in the UK and offers courses in everything from floristry to animal management and outdoor adventure.
For Alex Waterfield, Plumpton’s grounds and garden manager, the college also represents the culmination of a professional journey that began before he left school. Having studied horticulture at Plumpton College before working as a garden designer and running his own garden design and landscaping business for 12 years, he saw his current role advertised while working for the National Trust, and his working life came full circle.
“I did work experience at Stanmer Park aged 15, back when it was the plant sales base for the parks and gardens department of Brighton & Hove council,” he explains. “Now I’m project managing the horticultural aspect of Plumpton College and the Stanmer Park Restoration Project.”
