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Chelsea Fringe back and seeking ideas for 12th festival year
The Chelsea Fringe – the alternative garden festival and established highlight of the horticultural calendar – will take place for a 12th year with nine days of festivities confirmed from 20 – 28 May 2023. After two years in which participants responded creatively to the restrictions of the pandemic, the festival returned to the real world with a bang in 2022. A programme brimming with stimulating and diverse events took place with contributions from Cranbrook to Perth, and from Naples to Seattle. Fringe organisers are now encouraging everyone to start thinking about the imaginative, quirky, and unusual ideas they might bring to the 2023 Fringe to help create another bumper celebration of horticulture and grassroots gardening. Fringe founder and…
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Housing minister confirms final extension of Help to Buy practical completion deadline
Housing minister, Lucy Frazer has granted an extension to the practical completion deadline for Help to Buy transactions in England by six weeks. The minister confirmed the extension in a letter to the Home Builders Federation’s (HBF) executive chairman, Stewart Baseley on Thursday evening (26 January 2023). The update follows HBF’s contact with Homes England and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), alerting them to a small number of plots that would struggle to meet the 31 January ‘First Longstop’. While expressing disappointment that the additional forbearance is required in these small number of cases, the minister has…
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How are businesses tackling the cost-of-living crisis?
Leading companies within the sector share how they are supporting their employees The phrase ‘new year, new me’ is thrown around a lot in the month of January but there are some things the new year did not wash away, one of those being the cost-of-living crisis. Companies all over the UK have been working hard on finding ways to manage this crisis for their workers and their business alike. Businesses such as Tony Benger Landscaping, Johnstone Landscapes and Garden House Design have all introduced pay rises, for instance. “[Johnstone Landscapes] has tried to give the team some extra support…
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£43m in government support for Darlington’s new Burtree Garden Village
Thousands of new homes will be built in a new garden village in Burtree, Darlington, thanks to £43m government funding announced by Homes England on 26 January. Burtree Garden Village is set to create a new sustainable community of 2000 homes and state-of-the-art facilities that will help more people into homeownership, while also providing affordable homes and accommodation for older people. Homes England has today announced £43m to fund vital infrastructure for the new village – including new highways, sustainable travel links, and a public park and nature reserve, which will eventually cover almost half of the 307-acre site. The…
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Finalists announced as design contest reaches second stage
Barnet Council in partnership with the Landscape Institute launched a two-stage design contest in July to select an outstanding designer or team of designers to prepare proposals for a wide-ranging and comprehensive package of improvements to transform the West Hendon Playing Fields from its current form to an exemplary destination park. Nineteen entries were evaluated by a team of highly qualified judges. The brief looked for innovative ideas and proposals that took advantage of the unique constraints and opportunities of the site, creating a transformational green space for the local community. They were seeking innovative ideas and proposals that made…
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Horticulture trainees shortlisted for Lantra Scotland’s ALBAS 23
Horticulture trainees Shannon Leask and Brodie Linklater have been short-listed for Lantra Scotland’s Awards for Land-based and Aquaculture Skills (the ALBAS), which will take place on Thursday 9 March at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Dunblane Hydro. Shannon is from Quarff in Shetland and has been doing an SVQ in Horticulture through SRUC Elmwood, while working as a garden centre assistant at Plantiecrub Garden Centre in Shetland. She said: “I started working at Plantiecrub on a Saturday when I was still at school. My favourite subject was Biology so my work at Plantiecrub really ticked all the boxes. Working outdoors has…
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Eliot Barden announced as AIPH Young International Grower of the Year 2023
Eliot Barden, production and education manager for Majestic Trees, UK, received the Young International Grower of the Year Award at an International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) awards ceremony held on Tuesday 24 January 2023 in Essen, Germany. This award is part of the AIPH International Grower of the Year (IGOTY) Awards 2023, which celebrates the best of the best ornamentals production. The Young IGOTY category recognises vibrant individuals, aged 25-40, who will lead the industry into the future. Entrants were participants of Jungle Talks’ Pro Manager Mastercourse. Winner Eliot Barden had an interest in horticulture from an early age…
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Deadline fast approaching for Pro Landscaper Business Awards 2023 in association with Caribbean Blinds
The Pro Landscaper Business Awards are back for 2023 after a successful 2022 event and entries to the awards are still open until 10 February. This year our awards will have one big change; for the first time ever, the awards will be moving venues and taking place at Old Billingsgate London. The Pro Landscaper Business Awards will, once again, bring together the landscaping community for an afternoon to celebrate the excellent standards set within the landscaping industry. Pro Landscaper’s Jim Wilkinson says: “The Pro Landscaper Business Awards is my favourite day in the calendar, though of course there are…
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Brands you can trust in 2023
Firstly, a big thank you for being part of the Eljays44 family. We’re very grateful that more of you chose to interact with us and our brands in 2022 than ever before. As we’re all now fully invested in 2023, we want to continue giving you good reasons to be a part of the family in the future. At a time when everyone is feeling the pinch, we are committed to delivering a one-stop shop for quality and value you can trust, with events, magazines, and awards ceremonies we’re proud of, and of course that are a positive reflection on…
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Green makeover for Woolgate Exchange approved by City of London
UK developer Stanhope PLC and the Woolgate Exchange Unit Trust (WEUT) are moving forward plans for a full refurbishment of Woolgate Exchange, after receiving official planning consent from The City of London Corporation following the successful completion of their Section 106 agreements. The nine-storey building, newly named Woolgate, has been reimagined by leading architecture practice Stiff + Trevillion to meet the needs of modern occupiers. This includes the introduction of a new 1,500 sq ft rooftop pavilion boasting unique views of St Paul’s Cathedral and the City tower cluster. The renovated building will feature over 20,000 sq ft total external…
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Tobermore to use farm waste to reduce carbon emissions
Together with three local businesses, Tobermore has established a collaborative cluster to transform excess livestock manure and grass silage into biomethane which can be used as fuel. The partnership between Tobermore, Dale Farm, CemCor and Road Safety Contracts Group was enabled by the Centre for Advanced Sustainable Energy (CASE) at Queen’s University Belfast. It is estimated that Northern Ireland has three million cows, sheep and pigs producing nine million tonnes of manure. This manure contains phosphorous and ammonia. Phosphorous when in excess on agricultural land damages soil and water ecosystems through eutrophication. Ammonia is a greenhouse gas that damages the…
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Bold plans submitted to reawaken Silvertown site
A major new planning application for the Silvertown site in the London Borough of Newham has been submitted following an extensive consultation process with local residents and businesses. With a bold character founded in the industrial heritage of this historic part of London, this diverse neighbourhood will feature around 6,500 new homes with 50% affordable housing, alongside a vibrant new centre for the Royal Docks. Submitted by The Silvertown Partnership, striking designs for the 50-acre site show how the iconic Millennium Mills building, left derelict and largely disused for around 40 years, will be fully restored and form the centrepiece…
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Gardeners and landscape gardeners amongst the most thriving jobs in the skilled trades
Gardeners and landscape gardeners are amongst the most thriving jobs in the skilled trades, new analysis of workforce data has revealed. Having taken a deep dive into 15 years worth of data – electrical training provider Electrician Courses 4U have revealed the number of people working in these two jobs has increased by a steady 4.92% since 2006. The research which aims to shine a light on the evolution of the trades over the past three decades, discovered that in 2006 there were 138,200 people working as gardeners or landscape gardeners. By 2021 this number had increased by a substantial…
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Trees and woodlands provide over £400m each year in fight against flooding, new study finds
Trees and woodlands have long been known to play a vital role in flood resilience, but scientists are now able to establish the financial contribution they make in protecting communities from flooding. New research published on Friday 13 January by Forest Research estimates Great Britain’s trees contribute over £400m annually in benefits. The flood regulation service of Great Britain’s trees, forests and woodlands as an annualised central estimate gave annual values of £843 million and £420 million compared to bare soil and grass, respectively. The valuation is based on the role trees, woodlands and forests play in intercepting rainfall, storing…
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Forestry Commission lifts Phytophthora pluvialis restrictions on timber industry
Plant health requirements lifted following research which showed that risk of the disease spreading via timber material is low Restrictions on the felling and movement of timber in six demarcated areas in England impacted by the tree disease Phytophthora pluvialis will be lifted, the Forestry Commission announced 17 January. The UK chief plant health officer Nicola Spence has confirmed the changes following updated research which shows that the risk of the disease spreading via the movement of timber and wood materials into wider sites is low. A Pest Risk Analysis (PRA) has been carried out and updated following consultations and…
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Landmark Levelling Up Fund to spark transformational change across the UK
More than 100 projects awarded share of £2.1bn from Round 2 of government’s flagship Levelling Up Fund to create jobs and boost the economy Landmark levelling up funding will breathe new life into more than 100 communities, with up to £2.1bn awarded today to transformational projects across the United Kingdom. These include Eden Project North visitor attraction in Morecambe, a new AI campus in Blackpool, a new rail link in Cornwall, and a major regeneration scheme in Gateshead that will create jobs and grow the economy. Major government investment will benefit millions of people across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern…
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Hillier releases tree guide for landscape professionals
Hillier, the UK’s largest grower of semi-mature trees in the UK, has spent the last five years researching and curating a first-of-its-kind, comprehensive tree guide. Drawing on feedback from customers who were struggling to find any complete guide depicting the changing shape and characteristics of trees over many years, Hillier took on the undertaking to track more than 200 trees through their lifespan and produce the comprehensive guide, complete with 165 pages of descriptions, illustrations, and multiple colourful images for each tree. For architects, garden designers, and other landscape professionals, it is vital to have a clear vision of how…
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London to gain new garden in the sky, as the Camden Highline gets green light
Planning approval has been granted for the first section of the Camden Highline, running from Camden Gardens to Royal College Street. It will see the transformation of a section of disused railway into a new elevated urban park for London. The project is now set to offer much-needed green space to underserved communities, while creating a new global attraction for London, akin to New York’s High Line. In total, the Camden Highline will run for 1.2km, connecting the existing visitor appeal of Camden Town with the emerging destination and transport links of King’s Cross, and helping to knit together neighbourhoods…
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Sandringham West Lawn Garden redevelopment plans announced
Plans have been agreed and works will commence in the coming weeks to transform an area inside the formal Gardens at Sandringham. The Garden area to the west side of Sandringham House kept as a large expanse of lawn in recent years, is to be transformed into a new climate friendly Topiary Garden. Once the site of a formal ‘Parterre’ Garden in the 1800s and subsequently used for crops as part of the ‘Dig for Victory’ campaign in the Second World War, this area of the Garden will now have a decorative aspect and bring increased naturalistic planting to the…
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PfP Capital acquires igloo Regeneration
Aligned experience, purpose and values will service significant demand for PfP Capital’s end to end sustainable development and investment capabilities. PfP Capital, the social value and ESG-focused real estate fund manager, which is part of the UK’s leading social enterprise £5Bn Places for People, has acquired the UK’s first real estate B-Corp accredited organisation, and award-winning development manager, igloo Regeneration. PfP Capital and igloo have been working together since 2018 through a successful joint venture partnership formed following Places for People’s acquisition of the igloo Regeneration Fund’s joint venture holdings and development pipeline. PfP Capital’s acquisition of igloo will enable…
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GreenBlue Urban launches new website
In conjunction with celebrating 30 years as a leading supplier of Urban Greening Products, GreenBlue Urban are thrilled to announce the launch of its brand-new website! As GreenBlue Urban expand and innovate as does their industry collateral. The website encompasses the new branding as seen in the recently launched “Edition 10” and the new product groupings of Green, Blue, SmartSpace and Air. The design provides a user-friendly and informative experience for all, including Specifiers, Developers, Civil Engineers, Urban Planners, and Contractors. Key features of the website include “How we work with you” designed to give a better understanding of services…
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Thousands of new homes to be built on regenerated brownfield land
Disused and unloved brownfield sites across England will be regenerated to deliver thousands of new homes and jobs, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities announced 18 January 2023. From today, councils across England will be able to bid for a share of £60 million from the Brownfield Land Release Fund 2, which will help to bring neglected urban areas back into use, support regeneration projects and boost local economies. The funding will deliver 5,800 new homes by March 2027, create around 18,000 new jobs in the housing and construction sector, while helping thousands of first-time buyers into homeownership.…
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Belderbos Landscapes to host an event with Sarah Eberle as guest speaker
Belderbos Landscapes is hosting a networking event on 9 February at its showroom in South West London. Sarah Eberle will be taking to the floor to speak about her experience as one of the nation’s most eminent and much-loved garden designers. Managing director Ed Belderbos says he is “delighted to welcome people across the landscaping and horticultural industry to the company showroom. Sarah Eberle has so much insight and valuable experience to share as well as being such an engaging speaker. We have always enjoyed working with Sarah to build her gardens and very much looking forward to listening to…
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Balfour Beatty secures c.£90m Fife College campus contract
Balfour Beatty today announces that it has been awarded a c.£90m contract by Fife College for the design and construction of a new learning campus in Dunfermline, Scotland. Balfour Beatty will be responsible for the delivery of three interlinking buildings spanning over 20,000m2, which will house state-of-the-art teaching facilities and learning spaces for students, staff and business clients. As part of its commitment to leaving a lasting, positive legacy for the communities in which it operates, Balfour Beatty has committed to 50% of its workforce being made up of people from the local, surrounding area. Once complete, the campus will…
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Rolawn secures independent environmental accreditation for the fourth year running
Market-leading turf and topsoil producer, Rolawn Limited, has achieved continued accreditation under the Green Achiever scheme for the fourth consecutive year. Achieving the Diamond Banner Award, Rolawn secured the highest level in the scheme. Rolawn, based in the Vale of York, has secured the status under the Green Achiever scheme which offers environmental accreditation to businesses wishing to obtain independent acknowledgement of their green credentials and verification that they are actively reducing their environmental impact. Ken Brewster, Rolawn’s Marketing Director, said: “We have a robust and proactive environmental strategy, not all of which is necessarily visible to our audience, so…
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