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Surrey County Council exhibited at this year’s RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival to show how parking spaces can be converted into vibrant green spaces.

Designed by Helen Currie from Surrey County Council and Steve Dimmock from AtkinsRéalis, and built by highways contractor Ringway, the garden showcases three different parking space-sized areas, which will all be moved to Surrey’s streets after the festival.

They are:

• the Walton parklet, which focuses on air quality, with plants and trees that filter pollutants while providing shade and shelter
• the Cranleigh rain garden, which demonstrates sustainable drainage, using climate-resilient plants to manage stormwater and how to reduce flooding risks
• the Guildford parklet, which demonstrates biodiversity, crafted from reclaimed materials (including a canopy made form an old parachute) and featuring pollinator-friendly plants, bird baths and play elements to bring people and wildlife together.

Judges awarded the garden a silver medal. They said that it was ‘astonishingly clever’ to create a garden in such small public spaces. They said when you sit in the garden you feel cocooned in the street, away from the hustle and bustle of daily life. 

The garden, designed by Helen Currie from Surrey County Council, and Steve Dimmock from AtkinsRéalis, was also highly commended with an RHS Environmental Innovation award for its commitment to sustainable garden design.

Zoe Metcalfe, client director for local and central government at AtkinsRéalis, said: “The show garden demonstrates how it’s possible to take vehicle-dominated spaces transforming them into resilient and thriving places for people and nature. The plants have been selected and integrated with a rain garden and sustainable urban drainage, to create climate-ready street-scapes to reduce impacts from intense rainfall and heat waves. Developing an enhanced public realm for community engagement in this way has a huge positive social impact as well as supporting wildlife and promoting health and wellness.

“To be awarded in this way with a silver medal is really great testimony of the design and recognition of the importance of these values in developing thriving streets to connect people and communities for a climate-ready future by working with nature.”

Cllr Matt Furniss, Surrey County Council’s cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “Receiving the silver medal at one of the country’s best known garden festivals is a real honour. It reflects the ambition for our towns and villages that Surrey County Council is showcasing this week. The show garden demonstrates how we can provide a better balance between roads and pedestrians in our town centres and provide attractive and functional areas which will encourage people to visit, stay longer and support our vital local economies.”

Ringway service director Lewis Bridgman said: “Ringway is incredibly proud to have received this recognition at the RHS Garden Festival, made possible through our collaborative partnership with Surrey County Council. Transforming parking bays into pockets of green not only showcases the power of thoughtful design but also reminds us that even the smallest spaces can make a big difference.” 

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