Planning approval will see many of the historic Victorian park’s original features restored, including the iconic Grade-I listed dinosaurs and Italian Terraces, in a £17.75m transformation.
Plans for the next major phase of Bromley Council’s Crystal Palace Park regeneration programme have been unanimously approved by Bromley’s Development Control Committee. Listed building consent has also been granted for the tidal lakes and dinosaurs, Italian Terraces and the Paxton Bowl, which will enable these works to commence on site in 2025.
As part of the wider plan to reinvigorate the Grade-II* listed park, detailed plans for this phase, worth £17.75m, were developed by a team of specialist consultants led by HTA Design.
Extensive consultation and engagement with local residents and groups took place as plans for this phase were progressed. The key elements of this phase will deliver:
- The restoration of the Grade-I listed Geological Court, including the Dinosaur sculptures and an enhanced landscape setting.
- A new dinosaur and geologically themed play area.
- The restoration of the Grade-II Italian Terraces.
- A new information centre and maintenance facility.
- A new feature entrance at Penge Gate.
- Improved lighting, wayfinding, and accessibility around the Tidal Lakes and Italian Terraces.
In addition, the landscape proposals will seek to enhance the park’s incredible green spaces. New meadows, paleo-inspired planting and wildlife friendly shrub is included within the proposals to help create new habitats. Sustainable water management will also see stormwater runoff integrated within the landscape, through sensitively sculpted swales and rain gardens.
Councillor Yvonne Bear, Executive Councillor for Renewal, Recreation and Housing, said: “I am delighted that our aspirations for the regeneration of the Crystal Palace Park have now had the necessary approvals and we can forge ahead with our vision for a revitalised green space for residents and visitors. The efforts of HTA Design, local groups and partners and Crystal Palace Park Trust have come to fruition in our bold heritage project about which we can be truly proud and which will benefit not only residents and visitors now but future generations to come.”
Natalia Roussou, Landscape Design Director at HTA Design said: “This is a major step towards the regeneration of Crystal Palace Park, taking us closer to reimagining Britain’s parks as climate resilient, biodiverse and accessible spaces for all. By celebrating and protecting the site’s historic significance through the restoration and unearthing of its beautiful listed features, the proposals will re-establish one of London’s legacy parks as an international destination.”
Bromley Council is delivering the wider £52m regeneration plan for the park in partnership with the Crystal Palace Park Trust, who assumed responsibility for the management of the park as part of an historic handover in September 2023.
Victoria Pinnington, Chief Executive Officer, Crystal Palace Park Trust said: “We’re thrilled to have reached this major milestone in the history of Crystal Palace Park and the good news couldn’t be any more timely, with 2024 marking the 170th anniversary of the opening of this unique landscape. The regeneration works that have been approved are vital to ensuring that the park’s heritage assets are taken off the Heritage at Risk Register and protected for the benefit of generations to come. Our local community has long been aware of quite how special this park is. Once the works are completed, the Trust looks forward to sharing the story of ‘the world’s first theme park’ and welcoming many more people to this corner of south London in the years to come.”
The development of proposals for the dinosaur sculptures and their surrounding landscape, as well as the new play area and Information Centre have been made possible thanks to funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the ongoing support of Historic England to help guide restoration, particularly for the dinosaur sculptures.
Further funding is being provided from a number of sources to support the wider plan, including the sale of residential developments next to the park at Rockhills and Sydenham Villas, which received outline planning permission in 2021. Additional grant funding opportunities are also being sought on an ongoing basis and are still required to deliver the full regeneration plan.