Mansfield man Gordon Taylor has won an award for his community work.

Gordon has become known as the Cactus King at the Oasis Community Centre and Gardens, Worksop, after he started volunteering for its Gardening for Life project.

He originally went on a gardening and horticulture course and continued working on the therapeutic gardening project at Oasis.

At its Night of Honour awards ceremony, Gordon was given a framed certificate and a trophy for his voluntary work in the community.

After finishing the course at Oasis, Gordon has gone on to look after a geodesic dome, which grows cacti and succulents, creates mini gardens and teaches people about horticulture.  

Gordon has also helped in other projects, including providing respite care to children with additional needs through the Treasured Kids project and helping deliver food boxes to those in need in Bassetlaw, Mansfield and Ashfield for Operation Oasis during the Covid crisis.

In 2019 he appeared on BBC Gardener’s World, talking about the value of therapeutic community gardening, and recently featured in a film made about the work of the Oasis Community Centre by the Centre for Social Justice, which gave the charity a UK award for its work.

Gordon is also a volunteer at Male Abuse Notts Survivor Support (MANSS), a group that supports men who have been through different forms of abuse in the Mansfield area. 

For more information about Operation Oasis or MANSS call Steve Williams on 07795 194957.