Toxteth teen transforms wasteland into community garden

A teenager who has transformed a disused fly-tipping hotspot near his home into a community garden has said it will be a "lovely mindful space".

Khan was only 13 when he started the project to convert the wasteland in Mulgrave Street in Toxteth, Liverpool.

He set up a community organisation to raise funds and has worked with the council and fire service, along with residents to help create his vision.

Now 15, he said the garden would "bring great benefits".

Khan, who founded the Mulgrave Street Action Group, told BBC North West Tonight he wanted to transform the land into "something that's really useful".

He got fed up of people fly-tipping unwanted goods, including mattresses and televisions, on the open space and spent most of his spare time clearing it up.

Now his vision has become a reality with the official opening later, he said people would be able "to do a variety of things here" in a "multi-purpose space for the community" and it would be a "lovely mindful space".

"There are homes [nearby] that don't have gardens so I'm sure that it will bring great benefits to people's mental health," he added.

Khan founded the Mulgrave Street Action Group to obtain funding for the project

Residents have "come together" to help make it happen, Khan says

Khan's mother Natasha said she was so "proud" of her son's efforts over the last two years, which had seen him devote most of his spare time to the scheme.

"I'm not shocked because Khan is very persistent, she said.

"He knows what he wants and he works really hard to achieve."

The wasteland was littered with rubbish two years ago before Khan and his team set to work

One young resident who has helped on the project said: "I think this will look mesmerising and amazing."

Although much of the community has "come together" to help, Khan said there had been challenges along the way, such as issues with some contractors.

He said: "There has been some times where I genuinely thought, 'this is never going to happen'.

"One thing I have learnt is, it's not always going to be easy."

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