The Urban Nature Project is the Natural History Museum’s response to the growing pressures of urbanisation and biodiversity loss on people and planet. It aims to give people across the UK, no matter who they are or where they live, the motivation and tools to safeguard nature in towns and cities.

The project saw the transformation of the Museum’s five-acres of underused garden into  a welcoming, accessible and biologically diverse green space in the heart of London. The urban oasis, tells the story of change on our planet over time. New areas of habitat allow nature to flourish, and create a living laboratory where scientists can monitor, record and study urban wildlife.

We were appointed as the Main Contractor to undertake the work to the Museum’s two principal gardens: The Evolution Garden, telling the story of change on our planet over time, and the Nature Discovery Garden supported by The Cadogan Charity, encouraging visitors to connect with nature and ponder Earth’s future.

Evolution Garden

The new Evolution Garden tells the story of life on Earth beginning 2.7 billion years ago through to today, told through the immersive timeline of plants, rocks of different geological periods from across the UK and representations of reptiles, birds, dinosaurs and mammals.

Improved Museum accessibility is also a significant part of this project, with step free access from the South Kensington tube station tunnel into the garden, and to the main Museum entrance.

Nature Discovery Garden supported by the Cadogan Charity

The new Nature Discovery Garden, supported by the Cadogan Charity, offers a stunning blend of woodlands, grasslands, and wetlands rich in biodiversity. Providing visitors the opportunity to connect with urban nature, the garden is also being used by scientists to monitor, study and find new ways for it to thrive. Intended to become the most intensely studied urban site of its kind, the garden serves as a pioneering hub for wildlife conservation and scientific innovation.

Key features include:

• Showcasing the fantastic nature on our doorstep.
• Improvements to the existing Wildlife Garden.
• Updated paths for improved accessibility.
• Raised walkways to protect habitats, as well as a sunken walkway to encourage pond dipping.
• A reconfiguration of the existing ponds to increase the wetland area by 20%.
• New areas for urban grassland to encourage biodiversity.

New building construction

• Nature Activity Centre Supported by AWS – used for scientific research and educational activities.
• Garden Kitchen – a café/function space, designed in keeping with the architecturally modern Palaeontology building and the Grade I listed Waterhouse Building.

Sustainability

Creating a highly accessible, sustainable design has been at the heart of this low redevelopment. 35 ambitious Sustainability and Social Value project KPIs were established, sustainable construction methods included maintaining a diesel free site, eliminating waste sent to landfill, and rainwater harvesting.

Photography: The Trustees of the Natural History Museum, London