Why Biodiversity Belongs at ACI Care

When we think about the gardens surrounding a care home, it is easy to focus on appearance.

Are the lawns tidy? Are the flower beds colourful? Are the paths clear and welcoming?

These things matter, but at ACI Care, we believe a garden can offer much more than attractive surroundings.

A care home garden can provide a habitat for wildlife, a source of daily interest for residents and a peaceful environment in which people can remain connected to the changing seasons and the natural world.

It can be beautiful without being overly manicured.

It can be carefully managed without removing everything wild.

Most importantly, it can support people and nature at the same time.

Nature Needs Space to Recover

The decline of biodiversity is not something happening only in distant rainforests or remote landscapes. It is happening around us.

Official figures published in May 2026 found that the average abundance of monitored species in England has fallen by around 40% since 1970. Separate government figures show that the UK’s wild bird population has declined by almost one fifth over the same period.1

Kent’s own State of Nature work has also highlighted the pressures facing local species and habitats, reinforcing the need for organisations, communities and individuals to give nature more space. 2

A care home cannot reverse biodiversity loss alone. However, every garden, mature tree, hedge, flowering border, bird box and patch of longer grass can become part of a much wider network of habitats.

Collectively, these spaces matter.

For example, at our New Romney care home nature is welcomed rather than designed out. The gardens are not treated simply as formal grounds to be viewed through a window. They are living spaces shared by residents and wildlife.

Squirrels dart through the trees, woodpeckers tap against the trunks and butterflies move between the flowers. Bumblebees pollinate the garden, dragonflies regularly appear and foxes use the grounds as their playground.

Many different species of birds visit throughout the year. One of the most treasured sights is a family of ducks that have returned annually for over five years. Their visits have become a much-loved tradition for residents and colleagues as they charter the development of the ducklings.

The fact that wildlife repeatedly returns suggests that the garden offers something increasingly valuable: food, shelter, water and a peaceful place in which animals feel safe.

Less Manicured Does Not Mean Less Cared For

There can be a temptation to make every outdoor space immaculate.

However, what looks slightly untidy to us can provide an essential home for another species.

Longer grass offers shelter to insects. Fallen leaves support invertebrates. Mature trees provide food and nesting places. Log piles create habitats, while flowering plants provide pollen and nectar.

This does not mean allowing gardens to become inaccessible or unmanaged. Care home grounds must remain safe, welcoming and easy to navigate. Paths need to be clear, seating needs to be comfortable and residents should be able to enjoy outdoor areas confidently.

The opportunity is to create balance. Formal areas, accessible paths and social spaces can sit alongside wildflower sections, mature planting, natural habitats and quieter corners for wildlife.

The Royal Horticultural Society advises that gardens can support biodiversity by including flowers across a long growing season, retaining mature trees and shrubs, adding water, reducing pesticide use and allowing some lawn flowers to grow.3

These are often modest changes, but together they can make a meaningful difference.

Connecting Biodiversity With Wellbeing

Creating wildlife-rich gardens is not only an environmental commitment.

It is also about quality of life. Care home gardens provide opportunities to notice, participate and connect.

A resident may not want to take part in a formal activity, but they may enjoy watching a robin land near the window, listening for a woodpecker or checking whether the ducks have returned.

A butterfly can prompt a memory.

The smell of lavender can begin a conversation.

Planting seeds can restore a sense of purpose and ownership.

Watching vegetables, flowers or herbs grow can create anticipation and achievement.

Guidance from the Sensory Trust highlights the wellbeing benefits that accessible, sensory-rich care home gardens can offer residents, families and colleagues. NHS England’s green social prescribing programme has also reported positive improvements in mental health and wellbeing through participation in nature-based activities.4

The value comes not only from being outside, but from being meaningfully connected to what is happening there.

Making Biodiversity Part of Everyday Care

Our ambition is to think about biodiversity across ACI Care’s homes, recognising that each garden and local environment is different.

Fairways sits close to the distinctive landscape of Romney Marsh.

The Old Rectory in Dymchurch has its own coastal character and growing conditions.

Mountside in Hastings is surrounded by the varied natural environment of East Sussex.

There should not be a single, identical garden plan imposed across every home. The most effective approach is one that responds to the location, existing wildlife, residents’ interests and the character of each garden.

Practical opportunities could include:

• Introducing more pollinator-friendly planting.
• Protecting established trees and hedges.
• Creating wildflower or longer-grass areas.
• Installing bird, bat and insect boxes.
• Providing safe sources of water.
• Creating log and leaf habitats in appropriate areas.
• Avoiding unnecessary pesticide use.
• Growing herbs, vegetables and flowers with residents.
• Recording visiting birds, butterflies and other wildlife.
• Working with local schools, gardening groups and wildlife organisations.

Residents can help select plants, fill feeders, make wildlife homes, take photographs and record seasonal changes.

Families can contribute plants, seeds or memories of gardens they once shared.

Colleagues can build wildlife observations into everyday conversations and activities.

Biodiversity then becomes something the whole home can participate in, rather than a project managed quietly in the background.

Environmental and Social Responsibility Working Together

For care providers, environmental responsibility should not sit separately from the people we support. The two are connected.

A more biodiverse garden can support pollinators, birds and local wildlife while also creating opportunities for movement, relaxation, reminiscence, sensory engagement and companionship.

It can provide a restorative space for colleagues and a welcoming environment for visiting families.

This is where environmental, social and governance commitments become real.

They are reflected in everyday decisions: what we plant, what we retain, what we allow to grow and how we invite residents to become involved.

Giving Nature a Home

Our care homes are first and foremost people’s homes.

Their gardens should reflect that.

They should be places where residents can sit with family, enjoy refreshments, take part in an activity or simply spend a quiet moment watching the world around them.

By giving nature more room, we are not reducing the quality of those environments. We are adding to them. Every season brings something different to notice whilst providing an important space for wildlife to thrive.