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Ella – Student and Garden Volunteer

1–7 Jun is National Volunteer Week! Volunteers are an essential part of Harewood, and this week we would like to show our gratitude and give thanks to all of our 200 volunteers for their outstanding volunteer service.

With over 100 acres of Grounds and Gardens, without the hard work of our garden volunteers and the support they provide to the Gardens team, we would be unable to keep our grounds looking so great all year round for our Members and visitors. We would like to introduce you to one of our garden volunteers Ella who has kindly shared with us her experience of volunteering at Harewood and how this has impacted her mental health.

“My. Happy. Place.”

My name is Ella. As part of my University studies, I took part in a three-week volunteer placement with the gardeners at Harewood House Trust, to answer the question; what benefits does volunteering here in the gardens have on my mental health?

Mindfulness.

I am a fan of worms now. As a child, I thrived in a world of mud and bugs. So perhaps I am predisposed to be intrigued by them. My favourite thing about digging through the soil was the creatures I would come across. I came across earthworms, beetles, millipedes.

Probably more than I know the name of. Volunteering at Harewood made me feel like a child again. I experienced childlike joy at finding these creepy crawlies. Calling to my comrades, “I’ve found a millipede!”. And on one occasion, I found myself watching as a worm attempted to burrow its way back into the soil. A solid 10 minutes I found myself watching. Which, in the grand scheme of time does not sound particularly long… However, that was 10 minutes of spontaneous mindfulness. The first benefit I experienced; how involuntarily mindful working in gardens makes you become. My first day, I experienced some anxiety about meeting a group of new people. Other days, there was the lingering awareness of my deadlines looming that would dampen my mood. After 30 minutes in the gardens, all of that faded away.

Teamwork.

We worked in all kinds of weather conditions, rain, snow, sunshine. It was the consensus between us that teamwork plays a role in keeping us motivated. On one day, me and two others were creating a bug motel. At some point temperatures must have dropped as within 20 minutes it had started snowing. My fingers and toes had gone numb, and I was uncomfortable. A part of me wanted to stop what I was doing and go home, frankly. But the ladies I was working with were powering through. And that was all the encouragement I needed to carry on. We distracted ourselves with conversation. Eventually that mindful muscle kicked back in, and I was happy to be outside, and in the snow. I love snow! I marvelled to a colleague that I liked how everyone just gets on with the work, no matter the conditions. She shared the sentiment that working within a team is an excellent motivator. I went home after lunch, with the promise of returning the next day in more layers.

This is the second benefit I found. Working together within a team with a common goal. It is a really nice way to connect with people. As someone who can experience social anxiety, there was none here, for me. Because there is no pressure to spark up a conversation. I relate to my teammates nonverbally, through this shared goal. Within that, it is nice to look up from the mud every now and then and share some words, or anecdotes, or laughs. There is a definite sense of belonging here which I appreciated.

Self-esteem.

And finally, Volunteering at Harewood has boosted my self-esteem. I have learnt about no-dig soil. This operates on the knowledge that soil is its own, self-sustaining, organism. I own a Rhubarb plant now, whom I love and hope to keep with me for the next 10 years. From the other volunteers, I heard about the trials and errors of growing your own fruits and vegetables. I also felt the pride they expressed after cooking a meal with produce, they grew! I feel inspired to try too. I have gained a new appreciation for nature. And I have learnt tips on how to protect it. Most importantly, I feel encouraged for my future, excited by possibility. The foundation of these experiences? The intention behind it all. Harewood House has very clear intentions to stay relevant with the present day. Much like soil, it is a living organism, that continues to evolve and adapt. And for me, this is vital. Spontaneous mindfulness, working within a team, and learning new things. Ultimately, I do not believe I would have experienced these benefits in abundance if the Trust were not intentionally about creating this safe space.

Rhubarb plant that was gifted to Ella

Thank you so much Ella for sharing your story!

Feeling inspired , find out more and get involved at https://harewood.org/about/join-us/volunteering/ or by contacting volunteer@harewood.org.

Harewood House Trust welcomes the creation of the Heirs of Slavery group, which includes David Lascelles, the Earl of Harewood, and other people whose ancestors profited from transatlantic slavery.

Harewood House Trust is an independent educational charitable trust established in 1986.  The Trust works to maintain and develop Harewood House, Gardens and Grounds, the historic home of the Lascelles family, for the public’s benefit. The charity, which is also an accredited museum, uses all the funds raised from visitor admission to keep the site open, to engage with Harewood’s local communities and to run a diverse programme of exhibitions and events, which are enjoyed by over 250,000 people every year. Given that Harewood House was built using profits from the Transatlantic trade in enslaved people, this programme has for a long time strived to open up conversations about this history and its ongoing impact around the world. Harewood House Trust welcomes the Heirs of Slavery’s statement and hopes that the group’s creation will continue to progress these conversations.

Since the charity’s creation, Harewood House Trust has maintained links with the Lascelles family. This has included generous donations from the family and working collaboratively with them on several projects. Harewood House Trust is grateful for their support of the charity’s projects and looks forward to further collaborations in future. The Trust will continue its work to be open about Harewood’s history; to make Harewood a welcoming, inclusive place for all; and to raise awareness of the local, national and global movements that seek restorative justice for enslaved people and their descendants.

These projects include:

• The Trust’s Open History series highlights the site’s past with the exhibition Bertie Robinson: The Footman from St Vincent and Black History walks with Leeds-based Heritage Corner.
• In the Missing Portraits series, the Trust is creating exhibitions to accompany portraits of Black sitters, commissioned by the Earl and Countess of Harewood to diversify the House’s historic art collection. The first portrait is of Leeds community activist and founder of Leeds Carnival Arthur France and the second will be of the actor and writer David Harewood, whose ancestors were enslaved on Lascelles plantations.
• In 2007 Harewood hosted a wide range of events to commemorate the Bicentenary of the Abolition of the Slave Trade. The highlight was performances of Carnival Messiah in a big top near Harewood House. Carnival Messiah is inspired by the music of Handel’s Messiah, performed Caribbean Carnival style and featuring Carnival performers from Britain and from Trinidad.

A full list of Harewood House Trust’s projects that engage with the site’s history can be found here.

Princess Mary, 1914. This portrait of Princess Mary was included in every Christmas Gift Box sent to troops fighting for Britain in 1914.

We are happy to share that Harewood is introducing a brand-new tour exclusively for groups!

This tour will delve into Harewood’s royal connection through the story of HRH Princess Mary.  Learn about the fascinating life of the Princess, while you explore our magnificent State Floor.

Who was Princess Mary?

Princess Victoria Alexandra Alice Mary of York was born on the 25th of April 1897 at York Cottage located on the Royal Estate of Sandringham.

Princess Mary was the only daughter of six children born to the Duke and Duchess of York, later King George V and Queen Mary.

As part of her royal duties, Princess Mary was affiliated with many organisations throughout her life, including the Girl Guides and Great Ormond Street. She also held several honorary military positions, including Commandant-in-Chief of the Royal Scots and British Red Cross Detachments. During the Second World War, Princess Mary served with the British Army from 1941 as Controller- Commandant of the Auxiliary Territorial Service (later the Women’s Royal Army Corps).

Princess Mary and Harewood

Buckingham Palace announced the engagement of Princess Mary and Henry, Viscount Lascelles, eldest son of the 5th Earl of Harewood in November 1921, with The Royal wedding taking place on the 28th of February 1922.

Princess Mary and the 6th Earl moved into Harewood in 1930 and made a number of modernisations and improvements to both the House and Estate. Princess Mary lived at Harewood for more than 30 years.

Mary is still known today as ‘The Yorkshire Princess’.

Group visits to Harewood

Groups of 12 or more benefit from our reduced group rates. Groups also benefit from one free admission for the group organiser and coach driver.

Explore the marital home of ‘The Yorkshire Princess’ with one of our expert guides.

Find out more about our Guided Tours and Group Visits

Our friendly group bookings team can be reached at 0113 218 1000 or via email groups@harewood.org

We are celebrating a very happy birthday this week at Harewood. 

Mr Otto is one of our Humboldt Penguins and can be found splashing about in the Penguin Pool located within Harewood’s Bird Garden.

Today he turns 26 years old, which is a fantastic age for a Humboldt penguin. Congratulations Mr Otto!

Like the other male penguins in our enclosure, he can be spotted wearing a coloured tag on his right wing. Each penguin has a red, yellow, blue, green or black coloured tag. These tags are located on the left wing for a female and on the right wing for a male. When next visiting the site please do make sure to pop down by the Penguin Pool and see if you can spot him.

Natural Habitat

Humboldt penguins originate from the coastal Peru and Chile. They face many threats in the wild such as the destruction of their habitats, fishing and hunting. The penguin enclosure here at Harewood was specifically designed to replicate the coastline of Peru in South America. The swimming pools are different depths and areas, with a rocky slope leading to a plateau.

Eating Habits 

When in the wild Humboldt penguins would feed on anchovies, squid and sardines as these can be found off the West coast of Peru, our penguins here at Harewood are fed whitebait and sprats, which are very similar in size.

Want to see Mr Otto in person?

Why not join us and meet our famous Humboldt Penguins while exploring Harewood’s Bird Garden.

While on site you can enjoy our penguin talks everyday and there is even the opportunity to get up close and feed these wonderful creatures with one of our Penguin Feeding Experiences.

Visiting as a school?

As part of our educational programme, pupils will be offered an unforgettable learning experience as they get outside the classroom and explore the Harewood Bird Garden in a session designed to stimulate a curiosity for the natural world. Our Learning Team have been hard at work redeveloping this beloved educational session and we hope to see you in 2023.

Meet the Penguins session >>

Meet the Birds session >>

Currently situated centre stage in the Old Kitchen is a most beautiful Gingerbread Harewood House, made and iced by one of our Garden Volunteers Klara. For this blog, we sit down with Klara and ask her about volunteering at Harewood and how her interest in gingerbread began.

When did you make and ice your first gingerbread?
I grew up in Hungary. Since I was a child, making gingerbread has been a part of my life. It is a Christmas tradition in our country to make and decorate gingerbread cookies, we call “mézeskalacs”.

How did you learn your craft?
At first, I learned my craft from my mother. Later, I developed my own style and various recipes, including gluten free, diary free and vegan. Over the years I adjusted my collections to meet the country-specific trend where I had been living. However, I have never lost my own style that makes my work unique and recognizable. I have a quality-oriented mindset, that comes from my background as a chemical engineer working in quality management and also as a certificated botanical artist.

How did you hear about volunteering at Harewood ?
I moved to Yorkshire in 2021 and I was looking for a volunteer gardening opportunity and I saw an advertisement for a Volunteer Open Afternoon in the Walled Garden when I first visited Harewood.

What is it you enjoy most about volunteering with the garden team?

The Garden team (staff and volunteers) are all very friendly and welcoming. We learn so much from the professional gardeners.

We work in a very warm environment, in beautiful surroundings, where everyone is very enthusiastic about our work and at the end of the day, when we see the results of our efforts, we feel very proud.

How did you start to make the Harewood gingerbread House ?
I researched the floorplan, took many photos and then simplified the House, retaining its main characteristics. In total, it took about 2 weeks to complete the project.

What icing do you find most satisfying or do you enjoy doing most?
I like the simple traditional designs, but my favourite is creating gingerbreads where I can use my own imagination and design. It is most satisfying when I see the magic of a plain gingerbread transformed through my icing. I especially like doing 3D creations such as houses, Easter eggs, boxes, etc.

What would you like to do in the future?
I hope that I will have more opportunities in the UK to introduce my gingerbread artwork to more people and share my love of this beautiful craft.

@paindepicesdeklara
Klara’s Gingerbread on Facebook