The on-going research collaboration between the University of Malaya and Kuala Lumpur City Hall learn further from the successes and failures of the sensory gardens studied in the UK and Singapore, whilst sharing its own experiences and efforts done in providing such gardens, so as to improve the well-being and health in Malaysia.

1. Sensory
Garden:
Lessons
learned
from
the
UK
&
Singapore
Hazreena
Hussein
reenalambina@um.edu.my
The
University
of
Hong
Kong
17
April
2015

3. Whitehouse,
S.,
Varni,
J.W.,
Seid,
M.,
Cooper
Marcus,
C.,
Ensberg,
M.J.,
Jacobs,
J.R.
and
Mehlenbeck,
R.S.
(2001)
‘EvaluaTng
a
children’s
hospital
garden
environment:
UTlizaTon
and
costumer
saTsfacTon’.
Journal
of
environmental
psychology,
21.
pp.301-­‐314.
Photo
credit:
Clare
Cooper
Marcus
&
Naomi
A.
Sachs
(2014)
Therapeu@c
Landscapes,
p.93.

4. Moore,
R.
C.
and
Cosco,
N.
G.
(2007)
‘What
makes
a
park
inclusive
and
universally
designed?
A
mulT-­‐method
approach’.
In
Thompson,
C.
W.
and
Travlou,
P.
(eds.)
Open
space:
People
space.
London:
Taylor
&
Francis.
pp.85-­‐110.
Scotland
Yard
Adventure
Centre,
Edinburgh

5. What
is
a
sensory
garden?
What
makes
a
sensory
garden
different
from
any
other
garden?
Are
not
all
gardens
sensory?
What
is
a
sensory
garden
composed
of?
How
do
people
use
or
benefit
from
sensory
gardens?
A
variety
of
scented
plants
•
smell
A
variety
of
tacBle
qualiBes
and
wildlife
•
touch
•
sight
A
variety
of
colours
for
visual
sTmulaTon
•
hear
Water
elements,
birds,
climaBc
factors
•
taste
Engaged
with
edible
plants
•
health,
emo@onal
and
mental
Users
to
be
more
confident,
posiTve
of
mind
&
independent

6. ‘Sensory
gardens
cannot
be
designed
without
considering
the
human
element.
Unlike
tradiBonal
display
gardens
that
are
meant
to
be
observed
from
a
distance,
sensory
gardens
draw
the
visitor
into
touch,
smell
and
acBvely
experience
the
garden
with
all
senses’
Shoemaker,
C.A.
(2002)
InteracTon
by
Design:
Bringing
people
and
plants
together
for
health
and
well-­‐being.
'The
only
difference
in
a
sensory
garden
is
that
all
components
of
hard
&
soN
landscaping,
colours
and
textures
must
be
carefully
chosen
and
designed
to
appeal
to
the
senses
in
such
a
way
that
they
provide
maximum
sensory
sBmulaBon’.
Lambe,
L.
(1995)
Gardening:
A
mulTsensory
experience.

7. 70s
Netherlands
• The
concept
of
mulT
sensory
environment
was
originated
by
Hulsegge
and
Verheul
at
the
Hartenberg
InsTtute
where
they
created
the
first
snoezelen
room.
70s
UK
• The
concept
was
developed
in
hospitals,
later
integrated
in
special
schools
as
a
mulT-­‐sensory
curriculum.
The
iniTal
idea
of
SGs
derived
from
the
horTcultural
therapy
movement.
It
developed
more
rapidly
than
SGs,
which
used
to
be
‘gardens
for
the
blind’.
80s
UK
• Visually
impaired
people
challenged
the
iniTal
ideas
about
‘gardens
for
the
blind’
because
the
issue
of
being
segregated
from
able–
bodied
people
was
itself
beginning
to
be
challenged.
‘The
simplest
way
of
causing
a
riot
in
any
locality
in
Britain
would
be
to
clamp
on
the
able-­‐bodied
the
same
restricBons
that
now
apply
to
the
disabled.
They
feel
that
their
personal
handicaps
are
bad
enough
without
the
gratuitous
social
handicap
of
being
treated
differently
from
everyone
else’
(Rowson,
N.J.;
1985:
21)

8. Sensory
Garden
Case
Studies
CollaboraTon
Work
Sharifah
Rokiah
Knowledge
Centre,
Kedah
TherapeuTc
Sensory
STmulaTon
Garden,
KL

9. View
from
the
entrance
View
to
the
centre
of
the
hsg
(outer
area)
Corner
seaTng
area
–
Island
–
Mural
wall
Therapeu@c
Sensory
S@mula@on
Garden,
KL

10. Uncon@nuous
circula@on
network
Lyndale
School,
Liverpool

11.
Inaccessible
garden
feature
Royal
School
for
the
Deaf
and
Communica@on
Disorders,
Manchester

12.
Lack
of
water
feature
St.
Ann`s
School,
Surrey

13. Unfunc@onal
garden
feature
Royal
School
for
the
Deaf
and
Communica@on
Disorders,
Manchester

14.
Lack
of
maintenance
Kelvin
School,
Glasgow

15.
Inaccessible
surface
material
Cranbooth
Residen@al
School
for
Dual
Sensory
Impaired,
Glasgow

16. Steps
and
ramps
Cranbooth
Residen@al
School
for
Dual
Sensory
Impaired,
Glasgow

17. So
what
is
it
about
the
environment
that
is
engaging?

18.
Site
Planning
and
Spa@al
Loca@on
Sensory
Garden
at
BCA
Academy,
Singapore
Scented
Sound
Touch
Taste
BCA
Academy,
Singapore

19. Analysis
and
Discussion
(RSDCD)
Accessibility,
Way
finding
and
Circula@on
Royal
School
for
the
Deaf
and
Communica@on
Disorders,
Manchester

20. BCA
Academy,
Singapore
Physical
designed
garden
elements
Lyndale
School,
Liverpool

21. Soi
landscape
and
wildlife
refuge

22. Microclimate
It
was
a
misty
morning.
A
young
boy
with
his
teacher
was
having
a
leisurely
walk
in
the
Woodland
Garden.
As
they
walked
on
the
boardwalk
underneath
a
shady
canopy,
the
teacher
jumped
and
grabbed
a
branch.
The
boy
looked
at
her
and
wondered
why
she
had
done
that.
Ì
have
a
surprise
for
you…
are
you
ready?`
she
asked.
Both
of
his
hands
were
holding
the
rope
railing
while
jumping
with
excitement.
The
teacher
had
a
good
grip
of
the
branch,
ready
to
give
him
a
big
surprise.
She
shook
it
hard
with
both
of
her
hands
and
down
came
drips
of
rainwater
from
the
leaves.
The
boy
was
so
surprised;
he
let
go
of
his
hands
that
were
holding
the
rope
railing
and
liied
his
arms
up
while
his
face
looked
up
to
the
sky.
He
was
feeling
and
touching
the
rainwater.
At
one
point,
he
opened
his
mouth
to
taste
it.
When
the
rainwater
became
less,
the
teacher
stopped
and
laughed,
as
both
of
them
got
wet
(Hazreena`s
research
journal
entry,
May
2009)

23. Safety
and
Maintenance
Wheeling
stream
was
the
term
used
by
Jane
Stoneham,
who
designed
a
water
feature
in
a
special
school
for
wheelchair
users.
The
features
gives
them
a
feeling
of
wheeling
in
the
water
through
shallow
water
that
is
safe
to
cross
over.

24. •
A
good
circulaTon
network
and
a
variety
of
garden
features
affording
easy
way
finding
•
A
variety
of
features
posiToned
along
pathways
and
areas
with
easy
access,
afford
diverse
acTviTes
for
environmental
and
sensory
learning
ASPECTS
i. Accessibility
to
and
funcTonality
of
the
garden
features
ii. The
layout
of
the
circulaTon
network,
i.e.
Sensory
Trail
iii. Sensory
value,
not
focusing
only
on
the
aestheTcs
of
visual
composiTon
RECOMMENDATIONS
Site
planning
and
spaTal
locaTon
of
the
garden
in
relaTon
to
the
site
context;
Accessibility,
way
finding
and
circulaTon
network;
Physical
designed
elements;
Soi
landscape
and
Wildlife
refuge;
Microclimate;
Safety;
and
Maintenance.
So
what
is
it
about
the
environment
that
is
engaging?

25. Conclusion
New
direcTons
for
further
research
exploraTon
scheduled
at
the
TherapeuTc
Sensory
STmulaTon
Garden,
UMMC.
It
would
be
interesTng
to
examine
the
use
in
a
Malaysian
context.
This
would
produce
disTnct
research
on
the
design
of
these
gardens.
The
result
of
future
research
would
produce
further
knowledge
into
how
the
composiTon
of
the
garden
features
and
the
spaTal
design
of
the
sensory
garden
would
enable
the
users’
engagement
and
usability
of
the
garden.
Thus,
addiTonal
recommendaTons
and
improvements
for
future
use,
planning
and
the
design
of
sensory
gardens
in
special
schools
could
be
suggested.

26. Hussein,
H.
(2006)
An
exploratory
study
of
sensory
gardens.
hhp://ophoenix.org/gardening/wp-­‐content/uploads/2014/06/An-­‐Exploratory-­‐Study-­‐of-­‐Sensory-­‐Gardens.pdf
Hazreena
Hussein
(2009)
Sensory
Gardens.
Access
by
Design
(spring)
Issue
118:13-­‐17.
Hazreena
Hussein
(2009)
Sensory
garden
in
special
schools:
The
issues,
design
and
use.
Journal
of
Design
and
Built
Environment
5:77-­‐
95.
hhp://re.um.edu.my/images/fab/Files/jdbevol5/vol506.pdf
Hazreena
Hussein
(2010)
Using
the
sensory
garden
as
a
tool
to
enhance
the
educa@onal
development
and
social
interac@on
of
children
with
special
needs.
Bri%sh
Journal
of
Learning
Support,
25(1):
25-­‐31.
doi:
10.1111/j.1467-­‐9604.2009.01435.x
Hazreena
Hussein
(2010)
Using
the
sensory
garden
as
a
tool
to
enhance
the
educa@onal
development
and
social
interac@on
of
children
with
special
needs.
Bri%sh
Journal
of
Learning
Support,
25(1):
25-­‐31.
doi:
10.1111/j.1467-­‐9604.2009.01435.x
Hazreena
Hussein
(2010)
Sensory
Gardens:
Assessing
their
Design
and
Use.
Intelligent
Buildings
Interna%onal
2(2)116-­‐123(8).
Hazreena
Hussein
(2011)
The
Influence
of
Sensory
Gardens
on
the
Behavior
of
Children
with
Special
Educa@onal
Needs.
Asian
Journal
of
Environment-­‐
Behavior
Studies
2(4):
78-­‐93.
hhp://fspu.uitm.edu.my/cebs/images/stories/aj7hazreenahussein.pdf
Hazreena
Hussein
(2013)
Paberns
of
seated
ac@vity
in
sensory
gardens
among
children
educated
in
special
schools.
Support
for
Learning
28(2):
73-­‐78.
doi:
10.1111/1467-­‐9604.12021
Hazreena
Hussein,
Nik
Malik
Nik
Zainal
Abidin
&
Zaleha
Omar
(2013)
Engaging
research
and
prac@ce
in
crea@ng
for
outdoor
mul@-­‐sensory
environments:
Facing
future
challenges.
AicE-­‐Bs
2013
London.
Procedia
-­‐
Social
and
Behavioral
Sciences
105:536-­‐546.
doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.11.057
Hussein,
H.
&
Daud,
M.N.
(2013)
Taman
Sensori:
Kanak-­‐Kanak
Bekeperluan
Khas.
Penerbit
Universi@
Malaya.
Hazreena
Hussein
and
Md
Nasir
Daud
(2015)
Examining
the
Methods
for
Inves@ga@ng
Behavioral
Clues
of
Special-­‐schooled
Children.
Field
Methods
27:
97-­‐112.doi:10.1177/1525822X14537579
Clare
Cooper
Marcus
and
Naomi
A.
Sachs
(2014)
Therapeu@c
Landscapes:
An
evidence-­‐based
approach
to
designing
healing
gardens
and
restora@ve
outdoor
spaces.
Wiley.
Gayle
Souter-­‐Brown
(2015)
Landscape
and
Urban
Design
for
Health
and
Well-­‐Being:
Using
healing,
sensory
and
therapeu@c
gardens.
Routledge.

27. Thank
you
to
Ms.
Syaidatul
Azzreen
Ishak,
research
assistant
of
Sub-­‐GC3,
UM
for
cover
image
and
BCA
Academy`s
layout
plan.