Garden design courses post-graduate level diploma in landscape design

..

.. Post Graduate Diploma

Timetable S1 >> S2 >>

Student Profile >>

Books and materials >>

....Course Outline >>

Course structure >>

Student feedback >>

Short courses >>

ARTICLE FOR GROUNDCOVER - AUGUST 2002
GOING BACK TO COLLEGE

As some of you will know, I made the decision last August, following a talk given to the Surrey Garden Design Group by Duncan Heather, to go back to College – again! We are now one year on, the course at the Oxford College of Garden Design is over (bar the mountain of work that I still have to plough through) and it is time to look back and assess. Was it worth the huge investment of time and money, not to mention the enormous input of energy required, the constant juggling, the late nights, and the knock-on effects on my family?

Why on earth did I decide to take this on anyway? The workload proved to be enormous alongside my continuing work for existing clients and all the other demands on my time.

I had finished my first course, at the English Gardening School, back in 1989 but, despite doing a lot of work and enjoying the course immensely, I soon realised once I started to work that I did not have all the tools I needed. I was very dependent on a good contractor. I have worked largely part time since then, fitting my business in and around my children, and have done my best to fill the yawning gaps in my knowledge by reading, attending courses and picking up information wherever and whenever I can. At the rate I was going, it would have taken me a lifetime to acquire those tools. So, when I heard Duncan’s talk last year, I decided to try and short-circuit this process by returning to College – but I had no idea of what I was letting myself in for!

Many people advised me against it and could not understand why I felt the need to go back to College again when I had plenty of work and was making good gardens. But I knew that I needed to fill those gaps – construction, specifications, contracts, drainage etc. – if I was to build a reputation as a successful garden designer.

The course was a complete revelation to me. On a very basic level, I realised how much I have missed the company of others at work. It was a real treat to be able to share ideas and concepts and to have an insight into how other people tackle the same problems – mind expanding stuff. Duncan was also amazingly generous with his input and information. It is all too easy to fall into routines and habits that seem to work without questioning what you are doing and why. We can learn huge amounts from each other and need to keep pushing ourselves and moving forward – I had become stuck in a rut.

I digress.

One year on, I am now confident that those gaps I had recognised are plugged. I am able to produce detailed and comprehensive setting out plans complete with drainage information, supported by specifications, construction drawings, contour plans etc, and everything else a contractor might need to know from me. All those things that I was so cautious about producing before are now second nature – well almost! My planting designs have moved on too, and, most importantly, I have no hesitation in charging a proper fee for the complete and competent job I can now do.

However, I have gained much more than that. I was taken right back to basics – rather reluctantly at times – but my designs are now built on firm foundations that I understand and can manipulate – I am no longer relying just on instinct. This reassessment and rebuilding has helped me to crystallise my thoughts and to find my own way forward. Before, I had faced each new garden with excitement, but also with a certain amount of angst and trepidation. The blank sheet of paper on the drawing board was, at times, quite daunting. Would I be able to produce the goods? Now I feel so much more confident and excited by the whole design process. For me, garden design is no longer an isolated endeavour but part of the whole movement of art and architecture – we are inextricably linked.

Taking this time out has been truly invaluable for me – I feel reinvigorated, much more confident and excited about getting back to designing challenging gardens for real people. Regrets?……….. None at all.

Alison Brett

...

.

Home FAQ Links Testimonials