Dr James Kinross, a senior lecturer in colorectal surgery and a consultant surgeon at Imperial College London, approached HCGA at the beginning of 2026 to ask for support in designing a research project proposal. The proposal was on the health benefits of community gardening for people with gut health conditions like IBS or IBD.
Dr Kinross highlighted that very little data has been produced on the impact of green spaces on gastrointestinal function. He mentioned that GI diseases are among the most costly conditions in the NHS. Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) affects 620,000 UK patients, costing £1 billion a year. It was stressed that this type of project would be most needed in deprived communities that face barriers to green space and White City in North West London was chosen because of this. It was also highlighted that despite HCGA running for 40 years and having multi-funder confidence (LBHF, City Bridge Trust, Kusuma Trust, Macmillan, National Lottery), no published quantitative evaluation using validated instruments exists from any HCGA programme.
HCGA supported by recruiting local people with gut health conditions to help shape the research project proposal. Volunteers from Phoenix Farm were asked to contribute. The meeting was held at Phoenix Farm and was promoted as a Community Conversation. Dr James Kinross joined the meeting, where a series of questions were asked to the group of 10 participants. This shaped the proposal and each participant were given refreshments and a Sainsbury’s voucher as a thank you for attending.