RHS calls for more urban gardens

The Royal Cultural Society (RHS) is calling for the provision of gardens to be central to UK housebuilding targets. The call comes as it hosts more than 70 green infrastructure experts from around the world, and housing crisis solutions are discussed at the Labour Party Conference.

With more than four-fifths of the UK population living in urban areas, ensuring the creation and maintenance of domestic and shared gardens is fundamental to building resilient communities, the charity says. Gardens, and the cultivated plants within them, offer nature-based solutions for climate adaptation and mitigation.

The RHS is calling for a review of the Biodiversity Net Gain 4.0 metric, updated planning guidelines to require cultivated landscapes and garden masterplans for urban areas. Crucially, these gardens or planted spaces might take on new and creative forms.

'A once-in-a-generation spree'
Alistair Griffiths, director of science and collections for the RHS, said: “With plans for a once-in-a-generation housebuilding spree, it is time for a collaborative and coordinated strategy that puts gardens and cultivated green spaces at the heart of our communities. We need to leverage their numerous benefits for many more people, and provide space for active and not simply passive engagement with nature.”

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