The GREAT Market Garden Project is led by FWAG SW, who have created a 7.5-acre agroecological market garden next to the Royal Agricultural University (RAU) in Cirencester. The project focuses on regenerative horticulture and agroecology, providing sustainable vegetables and salads in a hands-on learning environment.
It supports students, staff, and external visitors through practical engagement, academic integration, and community collaboration, selling sustainable and healthy produce to the RAU, local food retailers, and the wider community.
What the project involves
Originally funded by The Esmée Fairbairn Foundation, the project has grown enormously with support from local funding partners including Cotswold District Council and Gloucestershire County Council. The site now features two polytunnels, around 40 outdoor growing beds, a borehole, solar power, and a new six-bay composting system.
Daily activities include propagation, planting, harvesting, woodland management, and events that connect people with sustainable land practices. The project has flourished through strong links to academic programmes, research, and public engagement opportunities.
What has helped us succeed
The project has flourished since its inception in 2022. While it has not been a straightforward journey – with many hurdles and much learning along the way – several key factors have contributed to its success:
- Strong academic integration: The garden is embedded across multiple university modules (e.g., MSc Agroecology, Environmental Science, Climate and Sustainability), ensuring consistent student involvement.
- Student and volunteer participation: Weekly volunteering sessions and a dedicated student Assistant Grower role have provided continuity and skill development. Our new Co-Head Growers are both current RAU students looking to enter the horticulture sector.
- External partnerships and events: Collaborations with organisations and visitors from local to global levels have strengthened knowledge exchange.
- Funding support: Funding from the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation contributed to the development of a recognised graduate framework in agroecology and gave the team development time to secure the funding needed to build our growing infrastructure.
- Practical, experiential learning: Real-world, hands-on activities have enhanced educational outcomes and direct engagement with healthy, sustainable food.
The difference we have made
Social impact
- Over 2,000 visitors have engaged with the project.
- 1,038 students have participated in direct learning experiences.
- 577.6 contact hours of teaching have been delivered.
- 16 volunteer sessions have been delivered with both students and the community in Cirencester.
- Over 800kg of sustainable and healthy vegetables were supplied to the local food system in our first year of harvesting.
- The project has created meaningful opportunities for students and members of the local community to gain practical skills, undertake agroecological research, and engage with sustainability in action.
Educational impact
- The MSc Agroecology programme is now recognised as a best practice exemplar.
- Increased availability of agroecology-focused research topics for students.
- Development of a graduate framework attracting wider recognition.
- Workshops for people across Gloucestershire of any age to learn about regenerative horticulture and develop skills to grow their own vegetables at home or in their community.
Biodiversity and environmental impact
A baseline assessment using the Soil Association Exchange shows a balanced but improving ecological profile:
- Strong performance in soil (76/100) and water management (78/100).
- High scores in hedgerow carbon metrics.
- A biodiversity score of 40/100 highlights clear opportunities for future improvement, especially in habitat management and species diversity.
Soil testing results show increasing levels of carbon sequestration:
- Organic matter has increased from 4% (typical for an agricultural soil) to 10.3% (high).
- Carbon content has increased from 2.38% (low) to 7.5% (high).
- Organic carbon stock of the growing area is now 178 t/ha (compared to the fallow area of the field which sits at 140 t/ha), proving that active carbon sequestration is taking place and building Soil Organic Carbon.
What our community says
“Had a lovely time and learned loads – definitely taking tips back home to my allotment. Inspiring to see, would love to do more, learned so much, would love to do it again!”
— Soil Matters Composting Workshop participant, March 2026
“It’s really good to have an opportunity like this, it’s good to introduce it into an agricultural university.”
— RAU Student at Heavy Horse Logging demo, March 2025
“It’s outstanding to have projects like this locally”
— Local SME owner at a Collaboration Event, July 2025
“As someone coming from a livestock background, with no real knowledge of Zerodig gardening, I was really inspired by the work you and the team are doing… and saw so much potential cross-over of learning.”
— Pasture for Life Visitor at Future Leaders in Agroecology Conference, April 2025
Plans for the future
Overall, the project blends education, environmental stewardship, and community engagement, creating a living example of agroecology in practice. Looking ahead, our plans include:
- Continue improving biodiversity outcomes, particularly habitat management, bird populations, and ecosystem connectivity.
- Diversify into mushrooms, soft fruits, viticulture, wildflowers, and medicinal herbs.
- Develop our teaching and learning spaces so we can offer more courses and events to increase agroecological knowledge and skills.
- Expand research opportunities in agroecology, hosting a range of trial plots particularly focused around soil health.
- Grow partnerships and increase community and international engagement.
- Continue to build our practical infrastructure with heated propagation, a delivery vehicle, and a third polytunnel.
