Kumpula School Garden

The activities of Kumpula School Garden are managed by the City of Helsinki Culture and Leisure Division’s Youth Services. The Gardening Association for Children and Youth has been organising camping activities for the schoolchildren of Kumpula since 2007.

Welcome to Café Raparperimeri

An ecological nature café planned and implemented by young people, called Café Raparperimeri, opened at Kumpula School Garden on 9 June. Come and relax in this idyllic garden setting!

We use as much of our own crops as possible to make our freshly baked goods and vegetarian treats, and beans from a craft roaster to brew our coffee. The summer café also offers opportunities to play various yard and board games as well as participate in workshops organised by young people. Alternatively, you could just relax in a hammock with a book. Dogs are welcome in the café, but must be kept on a lead. The garden has an accessible toilet.

History of the café

Café Raparperimeri is a café planned and implemented by local young people. It operated for the first time at Kumpula School Garden in summer 2019, employing 18 young people for varying periods of time. The relaxed atmosphere and fresh goods baked by young people attracted customers of all ages.

The idea about the café was born in RuutiBudjetti workshops of the Pasila Youth Work Unit in autumn 2018. RuutiBudjetti is a participatory budgeting model, in which young people are involved in decision-making concerning leisure time activities and services offered to young people. Some of the young people employed at the café were involved in planning it in spring 2019: they came up with a name for the café, designed the logo and planned the menu and programme. The café also took part in the Harvest Festival, Koskela Village Festival and the School Garden’s Garden of Horrors event.

The Gardening Association for Children and Youth

The objective is to increase awareness of gardening culture in the city and support the well-being of people of all ages through recreation and working together in the garden. In addition to developing gardening activities, the association seeks to strengthen the participation of children and young people in the School Garden’s activities. Besides adults, it also accepts children and young people as its members and volunteers.

History of Kumpula School Garden

Kumpula School Garden was founded in 1928. The gardening activities were the responsibility of the Education Department, and they were organised in the form of camp activities during summer holidays. Practical camp activities were the responsibility of the Teachers’ Summer Recreation Committee, i.e. teachers on summer holiday.

In 1996, the responsibility for camp activities was transferred to the Recreational Activity Association for Schoolchildren (Hekolo), which replaced the Teachers’ Summer Recreation Committee and organised children’s summer camps around Finland. However, some of Hekolo’s active members wished to develop gardening activities in particular and founded the Gardening Association for Children and Youth for this purpose in 2006.

They also wanted to utilise the garden area outside the summer season, and in 2011 the association started a youth gardening workshop called Vihreän Oksan Werstas (Workshop of the Green Branch) at Kumpula School Garden. In 2014, the management of Kumpula School Guarden was transferred from the Education Department of Helsinki to the Youth Department, currently known as Youth Services.

Read more: www.lastenpuutarha.fi

Bookings: eeva-maija.bergholm@lastenpuutarha.fi or 041 541 0456