{"id":50164,"date":"2025-07-16T19:55:36","date_gmt":"2025-07-16T18:55:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/?p=50164"},"modified":"2025-07-16T19:55:36","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T18:55:36","slug":"a-unique-multi-sensory-garden-in-paola","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/16\/a-unique-multi-sensory-garden-in-paola\/","title":{"rendered":"A unique multi-sensory garden in Paola"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Work has commenced on a new 5,000-square-metre garden in Paola, an open space designed as a therapeutic and multi-sensory garden, particularly for individuals with autism and other community members who benefit from a beautiful and inclusive environment.<\/p>\n<p>This project, the first of its kind in Malta, is being spearheaded by A\u0121enzija Sapport and Project Green and under the guidance of Ministers Miriam Dalli and Julia Farrugia, who recently visited the initial construction phase together with the Paola local council.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291a.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-50165 alignleft\" src=\"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291a-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"266\" height=\"177\" srcset=\"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291a-300x200.jpg 300w, http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291a-150x100.jpg 150w, http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291a.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 266px) 100vw, 266px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Minister Miriam Dalli emphasised, \u201cWe are carrying out numerous works on open spaces across the country. When we promised that everyone would have access to green spaces, we didn\u2019t just mean more gardens in every locality. We meant creating diverse spaces for diverse needs and tastes. Our vision is for a strong, beautiful, environmentally conscious, and inclusive Malta that leaves no one behind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Minister Julia Farrugia added that the investment goes beyond aesthetics; the main objective is to provide a modern and accessible space for persons with disabilities who attend A\u0121enzija Sapport centres. \u201cThe sensory garden is specifically designed to provide an inclusive environment that focuses on multi-sensory experiences, promoting independence, social participation, and physical activity. This project also aligns with the Government\u2019s National Autism Strategy (2021\u20132030), which advocates for inclusive environments adapted to individuals on the autism spectrum,\u201d Minister Farrugia said.<\/p>\n<p>The development is transforming a previously underutilised area into a vibrant, accessible environment. The garden will feature elements such as balance trails, stepping logs, and social interaction zones, all of which help enhance mobility, coordination, and emotional connection with the surroundings.<\/p>\n<p>A key feature is a bocce pitch designed according to Special Olympics standards, which will serve as a training hub and venue for inclusive sports activities.Additionally, a basketball court is being renovated and made accessible, while the entire garden is being planned with full accessibility in mind, including for those with limited mobility or other challenges.<\/p>\n<p>Liana Saliba Gazzano,\u00a0Head of Implementation at Project Green, explained, \u201cWe\u2019re working closely with A\u0121enzija Sapport to merge the community\u2019s needs with those of the agency\u2019s service users. Our focus is to bring this vision to life for the benefit of all.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Oliver Scicluna, CEO of A\u0121enzija Sapport, stated that the collaboration with Project Green marks a concrete step toward a more inclusive society. \u201cThanks to this initiative, the agency is extending its commitment to inclusion and accessibility not only for its service users but for the wider community. The creation of this multi-sensory space adds real value by actively addressing sensory and access needs while strengthening community participation and belonging.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Once completed, the garden will be open to the public on Monday to Friday: 12:30pm\u20136:00pm, and Saturday and Sunday: 7:00am\u20136:00pm.<\/p>\n<p><em>Photos: DOI\/MEEC-MIV<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"pvc_stats_50164\" class=\"pvc_stats all  \" data-element-id=\"50164\" style=\"\"><i class=\"pvc-stats-icon medium\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.0\" viewBox=\"0 0 502 315\" preserveAspectRatio=\"xMidYMid meet\"><g transform=\"translate(0,332) scale(0.1,-0.1)\" fill=\"\" stroke=\"none\"><path d=\"M2394 3279 l-29 -30 -3 -207 c-2 -182 0 -211 15 -242 39 -76 157 -76 196 0 15 31 17 60 15 243 l-3 209 -33 29 c-26 23 -41 29 -80 29 -41 0 -53 -5 -78 -31z\"\/><path d=\"M3085 3251 c-45 -19 -58 -50 -96 -229 -47 -217 -49 -260 -13 -295 52 -53 146 -42 177 20 16 31 87 366 87 410 0 70 -86 122 -155 94z\"\/><path d=\"M1751 3234 c-13 -9 -29 -31 -37 -50 -12 -29 -10 -49 21 -204 19 -94 39 -189 45 -210 14 -50 54 -80 110 -80 34 0 48 6 76 34 21 21 34 44 34 59 0 14 -18 113 -40 219 -37 178 -43 195 -70 221 -36 32 -101 37 -139 11z\"\/><path d=\"M1163 3073 c-36 -7 -73 -59 -73 -102 0 -56 133 -378 171 -413 34 -32 83 -37 129 -13 70 36 67 87 -16 290 -86 209 -89 214 -129 231 -35 14 -42 15 -82 7z\"\/><path d=\"M3689 3066 c-15 -9 -33 -30 -42 -48 -48 -103 -147 -355 -147 -375 0 -98 131 -148 192 -74 13 15 57 108 97 206 80 196 84 226 37 273 -30 30 -99 39 -137 18z\"\/><path d=\"M583 2784 c-38 -19 -67 -74 -58 -113 9 -42 211 -354 242 -373 16 -10 45 -18 66 -18 51 0 107 52 107 100 0 39 -1 41 -124 234 -80 126 -108 162 -133 173 -41 17 -61 16 -100 -3z\"\/><path d=\"M4250 2784 c-14 -9 -74 -91 -133 -183 -95 -150 -107 -173 -107 -213 0 -55 33 -94 87 -104 67 -13 90 8 211 198 130 202 137 225 78 284 -27 27 -42 34 -72 34 -22 0 -50 -8 -64 -16z\"\/><path d=\"M2275 2693 c-553 -48 -1095 -270 -1585 -649 -135 -104 -459 -423 -483 -476 -23 -49 -22 -139 2 -186 73 -142 361 -457 571 -626 285 -228 642 -407 990 -497 242 -63 336 -73 660 -74 310 0 370 5 595 52 535 111 1045 392 1455 803 122 121 250 273 275 326 19 41 19 137 0 174 -41 79 -309 363 -465 492 -447 370 -946 591 -1479 653 -113 14 -422 18 -536 8z m395 -428 c171 -34 330 -124 456 -258 112 -119 167 -219 211 -378 27 -96 24 -300 -5 -401 -72 -255 -236 -447 -474 -557 -132 -62 -201 -76 -368 -76 -167 0 -236 14 -368 76 -213 98 -373 271 -451 485 -162 444 86 934 547 1084 153 49 292 57 452 25z m909 -232 c222 -123 408 -262 593 -441 76 -74 138 -139 138 -144 0 -16 -233 -242 -330 -319 -155 -123 -309 -223 -461 -299 l-81 -41 32 46 c18 26 49 83 70 128 143 306 141 649 -6 957 -25 52 -61 116 -79 142 l-34 47 45 -20 c26 -10 76 -36 113 -56z m-2057 25 c-40 -58 -105 -190 -130 -263 -110 -324 -59 -707 132 -981 25 -35 42 -64 37 -64 -19 0 -241 119 -326 174 -188 122 -406 314 -532 468 l-58 71 108 103 c185 178 428 349 672 473 66 33 121 60 123 61 2 0 -10 -19 -26 -42z\"\/><path d=\"M2375 1950 c-198 -44 -350 -190 -395 -379 -18 -76 -8 -221 19 -290 114 -284 457 -406 731 -260 98 52 188 154 231 260 27 69 37 214 19 290 -38 163 -166 304 -326 360 -67 23 -215 33 -279 19z\"\/><\/g><\/svg><\/i> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"16\" height=\"16\" alt=\"Loading\" src=\"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/page-views-count\/ajax-loader-2x.gif\" border=0 \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Work has commenced on a new 5,000-square-metre garden in Paola, an open space designed as a therapeutic and multi-sensory garden, particularly for individuals with autism and other community members who benefit from a beautiful and inclusive environment. This project, the first of its kind in Malta, is being spearheaded by A\u0121enzija Sapport and Project Green [&hellip;]<\/p>\n<div class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>\n<p id=\"pvc_stats_50164\" class=\"pvc_stats all  \" data-element-id=\"50164\" style=\"\"><i class=\"pvc-stats-icon medium\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" version=\"1.0\" viewBox=\"0 0 502 315\" preserveAspectRatio=\"xMidYMid meet\"><g transform=\"translate(0,332) scale(0.1,-0.1)\" fill=\"\" stroke=\"none\"><path d=\"M2394 3279 l-29 -30 -3 -207 c-2 -182 0 -211 15 -242 39 -76 157 -76 196 0 15 31 17 60 15 243 l-3 209 -33 29 c-26 23 -41 29 -80 29 -41 0 -53 -5 -78 -31z\"\/><path d=\"M3085 3251 c-45 -19 -58 -50 -96 -229 -47 -217 -49 -260 -13 -295 52 -53 146 -42 177 20 16 31 87 366 87 410 0 70 -86 122 -155 94z\"\/><path d=\"M1751 3234 c-13 -9 -29 -31 -37 -50 -12 -29 -10 -49 21 -204 19 -94 39 -189 45 -210 14 -50 54 -80 110 -80 34 0 48 6 76 34 21 21 34 44 34 59 0 14 -18 113 -40 219 -37 178 -43 195 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0 174 -41 79 -309 363 -465 492 -447 370 -946 591 -1479 653 -113 14 -422 18 -536 8z m395 -428 c171 -34 330 -124 456 -258 112 -119 167 -219 211 -378 27 -96 24 -300 -5 -401 -72 -255 -236 -447 -474 -557 -132 -62 -201 -76 -368 -76 -167 0 -236 14 -368 76 -213 98 -373 271 -451 485 -162 444 86 934 547 1084 153 49 292 57 452 25z m909 -232 c222 -123 408 -262 593 -441 76 -74 138 -139 138 -144 0 -16 -233 -242 -330 -319 -155 -123 -309 -223 -461 -299 l-81 -41 32 46 c18 26 49 83 70 128 143 306 141 649 -6 957 -25 52 -61 116 -79 142 l-34 47 45 -20 c26 -10 76 -36 113 -56z m-2057 25 c-40 -58 -105 -190 -130 -263 -110 -324 -59 -707 132 -981 25 -35 42 -64 37 -64 -19 0 -241 119 -326 174 -188 122 -406 314 -532 468 l-58 71 108 103 c185 178 428 349 672 473 66 33 121 60 123 61 2 0 -10 -19 -26 -42z\"\/><path d=\"M2375 1950 c-198 -44 -350 -190 -395 -379 -18 -76 -8 -221 19 -290 114 -284 457 -406 731 -260 98 52 188 154 231 260 27 69 37 214 19 290 -38 163 -166 304 -326 360 -67 23 -215 33 -279 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class=\"pvc_clear\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50166,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-50164","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-local-news"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"thumbnail":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-150x106.jpg",150,106,true],"medium":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-300x212.jpg",300,212,true],"medium_large":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"large":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"1536x1536":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"2048x2048":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"td_0x420":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"td_80x60":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-80x60.jpg",80,60,true],"td_218x150":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-218x150.jpg",218,150,true],"td_324x400":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-324x300.jpg",324,300,true],"td_696x0":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"td_1068x0":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"td_100x70":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-100x70.jpg",100,70,true],"td_265x198":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-265x198.jpg",265,198,true],"td_324x160":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-324x160.jpg",324,160,true],"td_324x235":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-324x235.jpg",324,235,true],"td_356x220":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-356x220.jpg",356,220,true],"td_356x364":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-356x300.jpg",356,300,true],"td_533x261":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1-424x261.jpg",424,261,true],"td_534x462":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"td_696x385":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"td_741x486":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false],"td_1068x580":["http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/PR251291d1.jpg",424,300,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Bernard Lynch","author_link":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/author\/bernardlynch\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Work has commenced on a new 5,000-square-metre garden in Paola, an open space designed as a therapeutic and multi-sensory garden, particularly for individuals with autism and other community members who benefit from a beautiful and inclusive environment. This project, the first of its kind in Malta, is being spearheaded by A\u0121enzija Sapport and Project Green&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50164","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50164"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50164\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50167,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50164\/revisions\/50167"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50164"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50164"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/livenewsmalta.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50164"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}