4 August 2026
Keeping HEG Grows growing through the hosepipe ban
The dry weather is our biggest challenge of the summer. If you can spare a little time to pick up a watering can, it all helps — and the food we grow supports the Community Cafe.
Hendreds Environment Group
Where Community
and Nature Thrive
Local people. Practical action. A stronger, greener community across the Hendreds.
Right nowSummer at HEG
Keeping HEG Grows going through the hosepipe ban
The prolonged dry weather and hosepipe ban are having a real impact at the plot. We're conserving water, watering carefully by hand and mulching to retain moisture — but extra watering helpers are always welcome. You don't need to be a gardener or commit to a regular session. Many hands, and many watering cans, make lighter work.
Come and help us waterWe believe caring for our environment also means caring for each other.
Hendreds Environment Group brings people together to make a positive difference across the Hendreds. From growing and sharing food to reducing waste, supporting wildlife, creating welcoming community spaces and helping people learn new skills, our projects are all about one simple idea: when a community works together, small actions can create a big impact.
That’s why HEG isn’t just about being green. It’s about people, place and belonging — creating opportunities to meet, volunteer, learn, share, grow and take practical action together.
More about HEGWhat we do
Our projects have grown from ideas within our community and are powered by an incredible network of local volunteers.
HEG Grows
Growing food. Growing skills. Growing community.
HEG Community Café
Good food. Good company. A place for everyone.
HEG Community Larder
Sharing food. Reducing waste. Supporting our community.
Space for Wildlife
East Hendred — Let It Grow. Give nature a chance.
Orchard Lane Book Swap
Read • Reuse • Share
Learning & Community Action
Everyone can play a part in looking after the place we call home.
Our impact in numbers
A year of practical action, counted up.
- 40+
-
tonnes of food rescued
Good food saved from waste and redistributed through the Community Larder and Café in a year.
- 5,000+
-
volunteer hours
Café, Larder, Grows, Book Swap, events, wildlife work and HEG organisational time.
- 110+
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households registered
Signed up to the Community Larder, helping surplus food reach local people rather than the bin.
- 1,000+
-
books shared
Swapped and reused through the Orchard Lane Book Swap.
- 30
-
regular volunteers
Now involved with HEG, supported by a core team and additional community and corporate volunteers.
- 6
-
community projects
Community Larder, Community Café, HEG Grows, Space for Wildlife, Orchard Lane Book Swap and Learning & Community Action.
40+ tonnes of food saved • 1,000+ books shared • 5,000+ volunteer hours • 110+ larder households • thousands of community visits • 6 community projects — all powered by local people.
HEG is about doing, not just talking.
- Growing a tomato.
- Sharing surplus food.
- Planting for pollinators.
- Making someone a cup of tea.
- Giving a book another life.
- Teaching a child how a seed grows.
- Volunteering for an hour.
- Helping a neighbour.
Individually, these might feel like small things. Together, they build a stronger, more connected and more resilient community — and everyone has something they can contribute.
Every week
- Every Monday HEG Community Café Mill Lane Sports Pavilion 10.30am – 2.30pm
- Every Monday HEG Community Larder Snells Hall, Church Lane 3.30pm – 5.30pm
- Every Saturday HEG Grows East Hendred Allotments 11am – 1pm
Come and be part of HEG
You don’t need to be an environmental expert. You don’t need gardening experience. And you don’t need to commit hours every week.
Find your thingOur partners & funders
Everything HEG achieves is rooted in community — but we couldn’t do it alone. Their funding and practical support help us turn local ideas into real action.
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Oxfordshire County Council
Connected Communities
Supporting projects that strengthen communities, reduce isolation and help create places where people can connect, participate and support one another.
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Vale of White Horse District Council
Climate Action & Warm Spaces Grants
Helping us deliver practical local climate action alongside welcoming, inclusive community spaces — food waste reduction, community growing, resilience and opportunities for people to come together.
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CAG Oxfordshire
Community Action Groups Network
Providing support, knowledge, connections and funding opportunities that help grassroots environmental groups like HEG turn ideas into action and learn from a much wider network across Oxfordshire.
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SOFEA
Working together to reduce food waste and support our local community — the Community Larder is part of the SOFEA network.
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FareShare
Fighting hunger and tackling food waste — helping to rescue good food and get it to people in our area.
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Replenish
Supporting our work around reducing food waste, sustainable food, growing, composting and helping our community make practical changes that are good for people and planet.
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Magnox
Providing valuable community funding that has helped us invest in equipment for the HEG Community Larder.
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East Hendred Parish Council
A key local partner supporting HEG projects, especially our new Period Poverty campaign, community initiatives and improvements that directly benefit East Hendred and the wider Hendreds community.
Together, we can grow a greener, more resilient and connected community.