With Elmington Community Gardens
Project Aim
We aim to connect four local nature areas in North Camberwell – Burgess Park, Camberwell Green, Brunswick Park and Benhill Nature Garden, with a series of Biodiversity Stepping Stones, providing more opportunities for wildlife to flourish and for people to experience nature in their daily lives. Through planning, visualisation, community engagement, grant applications, and volunteer action, we are supporting the re-landscaping of available land in this area to be richer, greener, more wildlife-friendly, more beautiful and more biodiverse.
Much of this area is already being trialled as a Low Traffic Neighbourhood, which helps wildlife by reducing danger, noise, and pollution due to cars.
We are also working with the council to reduce mowing, which improves habitat for bees, butterflies, and birds.
Timeline
2020
project conception, Bowyer Place re-design concept and first Cleaner Greener Safer grant application (1)
2021
Brisbane Street Wildlife Triangle (5) and Hedge (8) cleaned up, wildlife hedges planted there and throughout Elmington estate, sunflowers grown and planted out, signage designed, Community Gardening at Langland House established, walled-off woodland litter picked and garden beds protected (11), Brisbane/Picton St trees planted and reduced mowing regime trialled (6), de-paving and rain garden improvements at Bridges, Cunningham, Decker, Hood Houses brief and concept design approved through resident consultation (7), artist-designed playground (10) completed, Low Traffic Neighbourhood being trialled, campaign to stop destruction of Lomond Grove Woodland (4), new CGS proposals submitted for depaving and improved green space access at (1), (9), and conserved Elmington Woods (11), yellow rattle wildflower seed mix trialled at Wildlife Triangle (5)
2022
Low-traffic neighborhood approved. Community coalition, including SNAV, Friends of Burgess Park, Elmington Community Gardens, Southwark Council, Benhill Road Nature Garden, and Anna Hwang Colligan Landscape Architecture, applies for a grant from the Rewild London Fund and is awarded £34K to improve biodiversity on the Elmington estate and create better connections for wildlife between the four local parks. Depaving at the block at Hopewell and Picton Streets is completed this summer, with planting to take place in the fall. Developers conduct the first public consultation on Magistrates Court proposal and SNAV advocates for green corridor connection and reduction of hard surface at Elmington/Kimpton.
Bowyer Place Updates
We have applied again for Cleaner Greener Safer funding for changes to remove hard surface from the bollarded area of Bowyer Place, and plant a wildflower meadow. About 8 SNAVers interviewed site users in 2020, and Susan and Anna went door to door in February of 2022. We have also applied for Rewild London funding for other sites on the corridor. If you live near Bowyer Place, please complete this online questionaire to show your support, or email us at info -at- southwarknature.org.uk. Thank you!
Brisbane Street Wildlife Garden
A patch of council land on Brisbane St, overrun by buddleia, favoured by starlings, and frequented by foxes, is now being rewilded by Elmington Community Gardens and Mother Nature! We trimmed the buddleia, planted hazel, hawthorn, dogwood, raspberry canes, and blackthorn, got the council to mow edges only. A fox family suffering from mange was also captured and rehabilitated. We are now enjoying seeing more butterflies and flowers on Brisbane Street. Let it grow!
Great what you are doing. I would love to take part and to extend these corridors /links east from burgess park through Bermondsey and both north and also further east southwark park and Russia dock woodlands.
Hi Rose, Great! Sorry for the delay in responding. We have not studied that connection yet, but SNAV is interested in working more up towards Bermondsey and Rotherhithe and has partnered with Trees for Bermondsey. Have you identified any potential stepping stones yet? Please email southwarknature@gmail.com to discuss further.
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Would you include Lettsom Allotment, and Lettsom Gardens to Camberwell Green Corridors”?
It would be great to extend the idea throughout Southwark! Lettsom Gardens could be possibly be connected to Brunswick Park through private and estate gardens. Ideally we would like to create a spot welcoming to small birds and flying pollinators every 50m. Please email southwarknature -at- gmail -dot- com if you would like to get in touch.