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The Scholarship Programme
Find out more about our Scholarship Programme, designed to nurture talented gardeners in the next step of their career.
The Scholarship Programme
The Scholarship Programme is an initiative which nurtures talented gardeners of the future, providing them with opportunities to hone their skills under the guidance of professionals. There are two types of Scholarship under this programme; one to cultivate head gardeners of the future, and the other focusing on kitchen garden skills and propagation.
Although initially based at Sissinghurst, Scholars have the opportunity to visit associated garden organisations, both in the UK and internationally, to broaden their development and learn from a variety of experts.
In 2025, the Programme expanded to Bodnant Garden in Wales, offering successful candidates the opportunity to be based there or at Sisssinghurst Castle.
The Scholarship was originally and continues to be generously funded by donations and legacies. If you are thinking about leaving a gift in will to the National Trust, you can find out more here.
The Scholarship Programme
Find out more about this initiative and the opportunities it can provide gardeners who are looking for their next step in career development.
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The Sissinghurst Scholar
In June 2022, Sissinghurst Castle Garden opened applications for The Sissinghurst Scholarship offering gardeners the special opportunity to work alongside our Head Gardener Troy Scott-Smith and his team whilst developing practical hands-on experience. This Scholarship is designed to cultivate the Head Gardeners of the future.
Troy commented, “Sissinghurst Castle Garden has been a foundation of horticultural learning for decades. In fact, in 1997, Nigel Nicolson, son of Vita and Harold, wrote that ‘Sissinghurst is a nursery not only for plants, but for head-gardeners'.
“Now, as a leading international garden, we want to embed this legacy as a core principle, creating an informal but world-class training environment to keep the tradition of learning at Sissinghurst alive for decades to come.”
Search #scholarsnotebook on Facebook and Instagram to read up on the weekly work from our Scholars.
Meet our Sissinghurst Scholars
Charlotte Hayden, Sissinghurst Scholar 2025-2027
Charlotte is the latest Scholar to be based here at Sissinghurst. In this photo, she (middle) works alongside Bodnant's Scholar Fliss (left) and Sissinghurst's Head Gardener Troy (right). Speaking on the Scholarship, Charlotte says "I feel privileged to have the chance to work alongside the team at Sissinghurst for the next 18 months, learning from both them and the garden, as well as the unique opportunity spend time on work placements."
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The Growing Scholar
Sissinghurst Castle first opened up applications for the Growing Scholar in 2023 which aimed to provide hands-on practical experience within the Nursery and Vegetable Garden here, under the supervision of expert technicians.
Meet our Growing Scholars
Anita Bowman, Growing Scholar 2025 - 2026
Anita is the latest Growing Scholar to be based at Sissinghurst. "I am retraining to be a gardener, having homeschooled and raised a family ... I'm interested in a future role as a propagator or gardener specialising in vegetable production within the National Trust. This makes the Scholarship ideal for me. There is so much variety with this work."
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