ABOUT MUD
Sam, Jo and Mike founded Manchester Urban Diggers CIC (MUD) in 2019 after taking over a disused bowling green in a public park in 2017 and turning it into a community market garden, they named it Platt Fields Market Garden. Recognising the need for more green spaces like PFMG in the city, they formed MUD.
The MUD team has grown, now helping to make beautiful gardens in urban spaces, where people grow, cook and eat delicious, healthy food together. These gardens are hubs for thriving, connected communities, havens for nature, and visions of a fair and sustainable alternative way to supply the food we need to be part of a fairer food system.
Click the picture below to read all about it on our blog.
Check out our video below from our partnership with Factory International and Mary-Ellen McTeague. We think it encapsulates the atmosphere at our Gardening Club at Platt Fields Market Garden on Fridays really well.
meet the team
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Chelsey Roberts
she/her
Events Coordinator
Comms & Social Media
chelsey@wearemud.org
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Hat Collins
they/them
Volunteer Coordinator
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Mike Hodson
he/him
Director
Head of Growing / Volunteering
mike@wearemud.org
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Lulu Heal
she/her
STH Practitioner
Strong Roots Lead
lulu@wearemud.org
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Iman Mahdi Aziz
she/her
Chef
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Sam Payne
he/him
Director
Head of Finance / Business
sam@wearemud.org
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Cara Powell
they/they
Events Manager
Volunteer Coordinator
cara@wearemud.org
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James Brown
he/they
Volunteer Coordinator
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Dan Thomson
he/him
Volunteer Coordinator
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Jo Payne
she/her
Director
Head of MUD Kitchen, Events & Comms
jo@wearemud.org
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Tom Cockroft
he/him
Volunteer Coordinator
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Lily Bulivant
she/her
PFMG Assistant General Manager
lily@wearemud.org
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Joey Frances
he/him
Fundraiser
fundraising@wearemud.org
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Katie Hourigan
she/her
Baker
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Maile Gabriel
she/her
Volunteer Coordinator
MUD Kitchen assistan
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Eve Taylor
she/her
Chef
Kitchen Manager
we want a fairer food system.
To us, a fairer food system treats people and nature with respect and care. Our priority will always be caring for and respecting the planet (that includes people!) We believe a fairer food system encompasses three intrinsically linked areas that combined, equate to Food Sovereignty.
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Prioritising natural, low-impact farming methods & localised, sustainable food production; reducing the city’s carbon footprint through food production in disused urban land; increasing biodiversity and soil health.
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Increasing access to green spaces in urban centres; offering therapeutic gardening to improve physical and mental wellbeing; supporting people towards careers paths in growing food; providing opportunities to volunteer, socialise, upskill & be mindful in beautiful, calm surroundings.
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Supporting diverse groups, cultures and individuals coming together in free, accessible, shared space; co-creating garden spaces with the whole community for the benefit of local people; cooking, eating and sharing food together; building connections and decreasing loneliness.
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The universal right to grow and cook food; local access to high quality, fresh, seasonal produce at fair prices - for growers and customers.
This includes everyone having opportunities to access appropriate education and training.
To collaborate and share skills around food growing, horticulture and cooking healthy food.
how we’re getting there
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This includes the MUD Kitchen, the MUD shop & the monthly Farmers Market at Platt Fields Market Garden.
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We’re teaching people how to grow and cook food. We have a mixed team of food growers, chefs, and STH practitioners who deliver free sessions such as our New Growers Programme and our Open Volunteering Days.
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We’ve worked on over 30 gardens since 2019. We design and build community gardens around the city and we maintain 3 large gardens in South, Central and East Manchester.
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Our gardens are places where local people can participate in activities that support greater wellbeing such as cooking clubs and community lunches and volunteer lunches.
we made a venn
to show the many benefits and outcomes from a fairer food system
“I feel like I’ve achieved something. Knowing that I’ve made a difference. It’s been years since I’ve worked or done anything. I like to go home and see the plants that I’ve taken with me and see the growth and I feel proud.”
Gardening Club Volunteer
our impact
1,000+
New volunteers across our projects in 2023
11,400+
Volunteering hours delivered across our projects in 2023
2,400+
Free meals given to community members in 2023
95.7%
said their wellbeing had improved as a result of volunteering with MUD
84%
of volunteers said they felt more connected to their community
1000+
litres of compost produced each month on average
2024/2025 IMPACT COMING SOON
help build the community
We are a not for profit social enterprise and the money we make goes towards developing our projects, providing services and events for the community and creating employment opportunities for our volunteers and the local community.
We have been learning as we go and have grown organically, experimenting and trailing solutions to complex problems to allow us to pay our team a fair wage whilst also achieving our objectives.
This isn’t easy and we rely on donations, grant funding and event ticket sales as well as volunteers and a passionate and dedicated team to keep going.
If you like what we do, please consider supporting us to continue our work.