Elephant Park, Southwark
Elephant Park, Southwark
Elephant and Castle, one of London’s fastest changing and modernised boroughs, with a master-planned revitalisation, budgeted at £2.5 billion, and a development framework approved by Southwark Council in 2004, this highly dense urban area has huge potential for creative spaces and green pockets of calmness.
The client, Lendlease has introduced three thousand new sustainable homes together with high-quality workspaces, cafes, restaurants, and shops, with the new Elephant Park green space at the centre. 420 sqm of natural playscape has become a benchmark for city living and demonstrates what can be achieved within a confined area.
Elephant Park and the entire development has received award-winning recognition the ‘The Developer’ and ‘Festival of Place’ #PineappleAwards including being shortlisted for a prestigious WAN award in the Urban Landscape Category. These nominations demonstrate that designs responding to and complimenting the urban environment through the creation of engaging, meaningful places are valued and admired.
“The vision for elephant park has always been Sustainability, green spaces and health and wellbeing. The idea for Elephant springs came from the community consultation conversations discussing how a space could be created that welcomes everyone at any given time throughout the day and enhances inclusion.”
– Kristy Lansdown, Head of Development – The Crown Estate – Project manager for elephant park
Project
Location
Contractor
Landscape Architect
Elephant and Castle, one of London’s fastest changing and modernised boroughs, with a master-planned revitalisation, budgeted at £2.5 billion, and a development framework approved by Southwark Council in 2004, this highly dense urban area has huge potential for creative spaces and green pockets of calmness.
The client, Lendlease has introduced three thousand new sustainable homes together with high-quality workspaces, cafes, restaurants, and shops, with the new Elephant Park green space at the centre. 420 sqm of natural playscape has become a benchmark for city living and demonstrates what can be achieved within a confined area.
Elephant Park and the entire development has received award-winning recognition the ‘The Developer’ and ‘Festival of Place’ #PineappleAwards including being shortlisted for a prestigious WAN award in the Urban Landscape Category. These nominations demonstrate that designs responding to and complimenting the urban environment through the creation of engaging, meaningful places are valued and admired.
“The vision for elephant park has always been Sustainability, green spaces and health and wellbeing. The idea for Elephant springs came from the community consultation conversations discussing how a space could be created that welcomes everyone at any given time throughout the day and enhances inclusion.”
– Kristy Lansdown, Head of Development – The Crown Estate – Project manager for elephant park
Project
Location
Contractor
Landscape Architect
Project
Location
Contractor
Landscape Architect
The client wanted to create a space for children and adults to both enjoy, therefore a waterscape was designed as an alternative to a park play.
With a unique sense of place, Gillespies (appointed landscape architect) created a landscape that focuses on natural water within the public realm. The carefully aligned Porphyry slabs and different levelled landform has contributed to the successful interpretation of the natural landscape. The scheme is an aesthetically pleasing haven of considerable community benefit and enjoyment, an invitation to socialise with others again, post-covid.
The vision that Lendlease developed with Chris Baines Associates over a 10 years ago, was to deliver a landscape with a ‘40year head start’ as defined by its mature trees planting. Successfully achieved by use of GreenBlue’s Rootspace soil cells beneath each tree pit. The large 8m tall mature and semi-mature trees consisted of London Plane’s, Liquidambars, and cherries, grown and supplied in the UK by Hilliers Nursery. They now provide a host of environmental benefits, from carbon capture, wildlife habitats and improving air quality.
The client wanted to create a space for children and adults to both enjoy, therefore a waterscape was designed as an alternative to a park play.
With a unique sense of place, Gillespies (appointed landscape architect) created a landscape that focuses on natural water within the public realm. The carefully aligned Porphyry slabs and different levelled landform has contributed to the successful interpretation of the natural landscape. The scheme is an aesthetically pleasing haven of considerable community benefit and enjoyment, an invitation to socialise with others again, post-covid.
The vision that Lendlease developed with Chris Baines Associates over a 10 years ago, was to deliver a landscape with a ‘40year head start’ as defined by its mature trees planting. Successfully achieved by use of GreenBlue’s Rootspace soil cells beneath each tree pit. The large 8m tall mature and semi-mature trees consisted of London Plane’s, Liquidambars, and cherries, grown and supplied in the UK by Hilliers Nursery. They now provide a host of environmental benefits, from carbon capture, wildlife habitats and improving air quality.
With the trees being near to maximum growth, the depth and volume for the excavated rooting zones were extremely important. The GreenBlue Technical Team assisted with the detailed designs early on, ensuring best practice planting methods were used. The main contractors, Lendlease Construction, and the installers, Blu-3 excavated the tree pits with ease and precision. Other essential factors to ensure the health of these trees were the aeration inlets, to encourage neutrient, (RootRain Arborvent’s), irrigation points to prevent drough, (RootRain Urban’s) and guying (ArborGuy Anchoring) to protect from high-winds, all available within the GreenBlue full tree pit package (The Arborsystem).
Not only do these natural green spaces enhance life for humanity, the five different planting communities have enhanced the areas for biodiversity, including bug hotels and bird/ bat boxes scattered across the park, encompassing a rich diverse encompassing community.
Congratulations to all who participated in this award-winning scheme, it is truly a case study worthy project that all levels of society can now enjoy.
Discover more about why our towns and cities need more mature urban trees.
With the trees being near to maximum growth, the depth and volume for the excavated rooting zones were extremely important. The GreenBlue Technical Team assisted with the detailed designs early on, ensuring best practice planting methods were used. The main contractors, Lendlease Construction, and the installers, Blu-3 excavated the tree pits with ease and precision. Other essential factors to ensure the health of these trees were the aeration inlets, to encourage neutrient, (RootRain Arborvent’s), irrigation points to prevent drough, (RootRain Urban’s) and guying (ArborGuy Anchoring) to protect from high-winds, all available within the GreenBlue full tree pit package (The Arborsystem).
Not only do these natural green spaces enhance life for humanity, the five different planting communities have enhanced the areas for biodiversity, including bug hotels and bird/ bat boxes scattered across the park, encompassing a rich diverse encompassing community.
Congratulations to all who participated in this award-winning scheme, it is truly a case study worthy project that all levels of society can now enjoy.
Discover more about why our towns and cities need more mature urban trees.
