Growing a diverse talent pipeline in the landscaping, gardening and horticulture sector

In November 2022, a number of leading membership groups in the Horticulture, Arboriculture, Landscaping and Garden Media industry signed an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Charter (BALI, 2022). Organisations such as BALI, the Society of Garden Designers (SGD) and the APL recognise that to meet the future needs of the sector it is vital that employers and training providers all play their part in attracting and retaining a more diverse workforce who feel an equal sense of belonging and enjoy the same opportunities to contribute their talent.

We know that the landscaping industry is growing and has the potential to grow enormously. The “Growing a Green Economy” (Oxford Economics, 2021) report indicates that if the opportunities are maximised, by 2030 ornamental horticulture and landscaping could contribute £41.8 billion to the UK economy, a 45% growth on figures from 2019.

With a greater interest in creating and protecting green spaces both for environmental sustainability and also our health and wellbeing, we see increasing investment both within private gardens and public spaces. We also see a growing need for more specialist skills such as in sustainable landscape design and construction. However, this growth is held back by a shortage of labour and an absence of the new skills that are needed. 

On top of this, we know that our customers are increasingly diverse. This means that people interact with gardens and open spaces in different ways, due to a wider range of cultural influences and styles, socio-economic drivers, ages or physical abilities. So not only do we need more people to enter the profession, but also a more diverse range of people who understand and can engage with diverse customers.

TASK Academy aims to address the skills shortage through its offer of affordable and accessible training. However, it is also working with diversity specialists Brew People Limited, to ensure that the industry does not lose out on the potential of students who might, in the past, not have seen the industry as one where they could thrive and succeed.

Anecdotally, in the Access All Areas Inclusion and Diversity Panel (organised by BALI in 2021), we heard how people with both passion and capability can experience barriers that discourage them from joining the industry or that result in them being unable to stay and progress: talented women can experience too much emphasis on physical strength or needing to behave like ‘one of the boys’; LGBTQ+ talent can experience hostility and toxic banter that goes unchallenged; ethnically diverse and economically disadvantaged talent can find the profession more accessible for those with white, privileged backgrounds; and talented people with disabilities can find too much focus on their perceived limitations rather than solutions that unleash their potential. 

As well as challenging our UK values of fairness and equality, this represents a huge missed opportunity for the profession. If we don’t succeed in growing a more diverse and inclusive workforce, we will continue to struggle with the significant talent shortage and be increasingly out of touch with the customer base. 

The role of TASK Academy along with other land-based and landscape training providers is critical if the principals of the profession’s EDI Charter are to be realised. This might be through showcasing successful diverse role models to attract a wider talent group, structuring training and support to enable a wider range of people to gain access and to succeed, or by creating a culture and environment where everyone is treated with dignity and respect and can thrive.  

TASK also has a responsibility to help students develop a greater awareness of their own role in supporting colleagues and customers with diverse identities and needs, so that we all benefit in the longer term from having more positive places to work. 

Working with Brew People, TASK is looking forward to sharing more to showcase its commitment to this important mission.

Laura Haycock, Brew People

Laura is a Chartered Psychologist and Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society.  She has over 25 years of consultancy experience working with leading organisations across all aspects of talent management, including a strong focus on diversity and inclusion. For twelve years, Laura co-directed an environmental consultancy business that specialised in restoration of historic landscapes. Through her company, Brew People Limited, Laura now uses a blend of psychology and environmental systems thinking to help organisations drive systemic inclusion. She is a passionate believer in the importance of green spaces for everyone and the need to engage everyone in supporting the sustainability and green space agenda.