{"id":2665,"date":"2026-06-08T13:14:48","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T13:14:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/?p=2665"},"modified":"2026-06-08T14:33:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T14:33:17","slug":"more-than-a-garden-how-one-business-helped-13-young-parents-step-outside","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/2026\/06\/08\/more-than-a-garden-how-one-business-helped-13-young-parents-step-outside\/","title":{"rendered":"More than a garden: how one business helped 13 young parents step outside"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>How Match My Project connected AD Construction Group Ltd with a Young Parents Service in Guildford and helped 13 young families step outside<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There is a garden at a Young Parents Service on Stoke Road in Guildford. For a while, it was not really a garden anyone used. The fencing had deteriorated and the planters were in poor shape. An outdoor space that is technically there but offers nothing to draw you in.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The team running the service knew this. They had already secured \u00a3500 in funding for garden furniture, and volunteers from A2Dominion were lined up to help with painting and staining once the work was done. But the bigger job was replacing and repairing the planters and adding a proper sandpit with a lid which had been flagged as not urgent, which in practice meant it was unlikely to happen any time soon. The garden stayed as it was and the residents stayed inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>This is exactly the gap Match My Project exists to close.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"311\" src=\"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/PXL_20251217_094323029.PORTRAIT.ORIGINAL3-1-1024x311.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2674\" srcset=\"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/PXL_20251217_094323029.PORTRAIT.ORIGINAL3-1-1024x311.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/PXL_20251217_094323029.PORTRAIT.ORIGINAL3-1-300x91.jpg 300w, https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/PXL_20251217_094323029.PORTRAIT.ORIGINAL3-1-768x233.jpg 768w, https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/PXL_20251217_094323029.PORTRAIT.ORIGINAL3-1-1536x466.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/PXL_20251217_094323029.PORTRAIT.ORIGINAL3-1-2048x621.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/PXL_20251217_094323029.PORTRAIT.ORIGINAL3-1-1568x475.jpg 1568w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What the service needed, and who answered<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The project was straightforward in its ask: three large planters and a sandpit with a lid. AD Construction Group Ltd saw the project and got in touch.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theadgroup.co.uk\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.theadgroup.co.uk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">AD Construction<\/a> is one of the leading privately owned public sector specialists in refurbishment services, based in the London Borough of Bexley and working across London, the South East, and the Home Counties. Their work spans planned maintenance, fire safety, and energy-efficient homes \u2013 delivered through long-term partnerships and bespoke contracts with housing providers and their residents.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When they came across this project, the connection was immediate. Cherie from the <a href=\"https:\/\/a2dominion.co.uk\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/a2dominion.co.uk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">A2Dominion<\/a> team spoke with AD Construction on a Friday. By the time the week was out, they had confirmed their involvement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe are really pleased to be getting involved,\u201d the team noted at the point of match \u2013 and they meant it.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why it matters for this particular group<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The service supports 13 residents under the age of 24, all with young children or babies, working towards living independently. Isolation is one of the biggest challenges they face \u2013 particularly for new mothers, for whom the gap between their front door and the wider world can feel very wide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An outdoor space where you can sit, let your child play, grow something with your hands, and do it alongside a neighbour, builds routine and relationships. Spending time outdoors, planting vegetables, growing food improves wellbeing, reduces a tight budget, and gives children something to learn from. The team on site had been working hard to create this kind of community and what they needed was somewhere to do it outside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What happened when the garden was finished<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The planters and the sandpit went in, with its lid. The volunteers from A2Dominion came and did the painting and staining. The garden on Stoke Road became, finally, somewhere you would actually want to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The feedback from the service was unambiguous: transforming the space had fostered belonging, safety and pride, strengthened family and community bonds, and supported mental wellbeing. A neglected patch of outdoor space had become somewhere 13 young families could step outside, let their children play, and feel part of something. For new mothers especially, that is not a small thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For AD Construction, the experience confirmed exactly why this kind of work matters. The team were pleased to be involved from the first conversation, and the feeling was mutual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI would love to work with AD Group again. Chloe was a pleasure to speak to, and couldn\u2019t have been more helpful.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What this kind of match makes possible<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Match My Project is about connecting businesses with community organisations to deliver Social Value in local communities. AD Construction Group Ltd did not need to make a complicated commitment. They needed to see a project that made sense, understand what was being asked, and say yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is what <a href=\"https:\/\/matchmyproject.org\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/matchmyproject.org\/\">the platform<\/a> is built for. Every project is verified and well-aligned before it goes live. The organisations listing them know what they need and have already done the work of being clear about the <em>what<\/em> <em>why<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Here\u2019s to the next 13,000 planters.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">About Match My Project<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/matchmyproject.org\/\">Match My Project<\/a> connects community organisations with local businesses to deliver Social Value. Get in touch at hello@matchmyproject.org to find out how your organisation can get started.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How Match My Project connected AD Construction Group Ltd with a Young Parents Service in Guildford and helped 13 young families step outside There is a garden at a Young Parents Service on Stoke Road in Guildford. For a while, it was not really a garden anyone used. The fencing had deteriorated and the planters [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2668,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[49,52,53,50,51,8,54],"class_list":["post-2665","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-case-study","tag-a2dominion-group","tag-ad-construction-group","tag-garden","tag-guilford","tag-match-my-project","tag-social-value","tag-young-parent-service","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2665","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2665"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2665\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2678,"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2665\/revisions\/2678"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2668"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2665"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2665"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journal.matchmyproject.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2665"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}