If you want to forage at the Cemetery Park, you must apply for permission. Please email contact@fothcp.org. If you’re unable to email, call 0208 8983 1277. It can take us up to 3 working days to reply, so please be patient.
As a charity we spend a lot of money, time and effort on our plants so that everyone (people and animals) can enjoy them. To ensure that foraging is carefully managed we require all foragers to request written permission, this allows us to monitor demand as well as provide clear guidance to foragers. Permission from The Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park is required for all foraging and we do enforce this during our patrols.
Please note that we only allow foraging for personal use. NO RESTAURANTS OR COMMERCIAL FORAGING is allowed. If you’re a chef, source your food legally and without the risk of a £5,000 fine, e.g. from Totally Wild, Farmdrop, or Ocado.
Please donate to support us replanting afterwards. The vast majority of our foragers make a donation.
You need to follow these rules for responsible foraging:
- Apply for permission – email contact@fothcp.org. Include the species, frequency, and quantity you want to forage.
- Donate. The vast majority of our foragers give a donation. It costs the charity time, effort and money to support foraging.
- Bring your phone/a copy of the permission email, so you can show the email if asked by staff.
- Only take a small quantity, maximum 150g – think a small bag of salad at the supermarket.
- Use a sharp tool so you don’t accidentally pull out the roots. You can not dig up plants.
- Leave no trace. Don’t trample any plants, and don’t disturb wildlife. Ensure areas don’t look damaged.
- Only pick from where there are lots of plants. If you see bald patches, do not pick there. Collect from more than one spot, and away from footpath edges (it looks bad, and think dog wee…).
If you are ever not 100% sure of what you are picking, please do not forage it. We wouldn’t want you to accidentally poison yourself.
If you’ve received permission in a previous year, please apply again, as the permission is annual and does expire.
Please note that according to Tower Hamlets Parks byelaws, picking plants isn’t allowed at all. Legally the Cemetery Park grounds are part of Tower Hamlets Parks, so in principle the byelaw still applies. However as a charity we strongly encourage people to enjoy nature, within reason, and by following our rules and guidance, foragers can find food without damaging the Cemetery Park.