Success Stories
Jennie Bracey - (Graduated Bristol 2007)
Many of our students continue working alongside studying - typically part time to enable them to attend our course. Jennie undertook the diploma course alongside her job at an events supply company based in Bristol.
One of her fellow students was a landscape contractor whose new build work meant that he did not have sufficient time to deal with all the design work himself, only the construction. Jennie began to design gardens for him whilst studying for her diploma. By the time she completed the course, for which she obtained a distinction, Jennie had already designed six gardens and had had the satisfaction of seeing each of these built.
Jennie continues to design gardens for the landscape contractor; she has set up her own design business, and is starting to receive enquiries through her website. Her design work has reached a level, less than a year after qualifying, where she is now having to give serious consideration to leaving her part time job to work full time in garden design. You can see examples of Jennie’s work on her website.
Lesley Hegarty and Robert Webber - (Graduated Bristol 2006)
Lesley Hegarty and Robert Webber met at Bristol University Botanic Garden where Robert was Head Gardener and Lesley a volunteer. After studying the Diploma course, their complementary skills in plantsmanship, design and business inevitably led them to form their own garden design business, the HegartyWebber Partnership.
"We thank the Pickard School for giving us the creative inspiration and fundamental design building blocks which started us on our way" says Lesley.
The Partnership’s initial project was the first phase of a 5-acre garden on a large country estate. This gave the opportunity to create a garden out of a field, tie the house into the landscape and enhance its beautiful views with a large gravel garden and several herbaceous and mixed borders.
Projects since then have included a special needs garden, gardens for newly built executive homes, an uber cool ‘room outside’ in a smart new development in Clifton and a sweeping drive and entrance garden for a country house in the Mendips.
Two years on, Robert and Lesley continue to derive immense job satisfaction from their work, and currently have 7 very different projects on the go.
www.hegartywebberpartnership.com
Samantha McKay - (Graduated London 2006)
Sam says:- "The reason I chose to do a course with PSGD was because it was very practical. The lectures were given by people actually working in garden design. This gave me both the necessary skills and the confidence to set up my own business and the school continues to provide me with advice and support as I continue to build this up.
I was encouraged to get my first commissions before the end of the course. This meant that I was able to take my first designs into the classroom for review which gave me the confidence to set myself up in business as soon as the course was over.
In my first year of business, I designed 16 gardens. In my second year, I had designed this number by June. I certainly feel extremely confident about the future."
