Rewilding our Cities: Nottingham is Un-Paving the Way
Nottingham’s exciting proposals for a greener city centre - a vision for future cities and their part to play in staving off the climate crisis
Illustration by Katie de Lusignan (@myhandsmadethese).
Typically when you think of rewilding, you think of the Scottish Highlands, National Parks, or even local woodlands. You don’t think of a run-down shopping centre. Well, Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust did just that, submitting a proposal to transform Broadmarsh Shopping Centre into a natural green space for local city dwellers.
In Nottingham, the proposal to turn the concrete shopping centre into a lush public park is part of a vision to transform the city from grey to green in the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust have worked with Influence Landscape Architects to take a ‘nature first’ approach to urban planning, hoping to transform the abandoned shopping centre into an accessible space for city dwellers to spend time in the natural world. Paul Wilkinson, Chief Executive of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, stated, “Transforming the Broadmarsh into a natural greenspace would bring people together and start putting the city’s nature into recovery at a time when natural greenspace has never been more valued or needed.”
Concept Visualisation of reimagined Broadmarsh Shopping Centre created for Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust by Influence
Since launching their proposal for the Broadmarsh redevelopment in December 2020, Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust have been in discussion with the council and were the first organisation to be invited to present their proposal. Since that initial presentation, the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust has worked alongside the Nottingham Green Party, Nottingham Lib Dems, Nottingham Co-Housing and Nottingham Good Food Network as part of a ‘green umbrella’ group. Their shared goal is to ensure that the Broadmarsh redevelopment is focused around natural greenspaces and sustainable urban planning. The agreement states that the redevelopment must put the natural world first, meet or exceed sustainable building principles, and underpin Nottingham’s 2028 Carbon Neutral commitment, as well as supporting social inclusion and food security. The plans must also align with the Wellbeing Design Guide published by Nottingham City Council in January 2020, aiming to assist in the design and delivery of healthy, sustainable places within Nottingham. It is hoped that the partnership will increase the pressure on Nottingham City Council to deliver a sustainable plan for the Broadmarsh redevelopment.
Nottingham City Council set up the ‘Broadmarsh: The Big Conversation’, which gathered over 3000 responses. Their summary states that a major theme from the feedback they received was for the future of the site to consist of green, natural, open spaces. The consultation is on-going with updates about the Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust’s proposal on their website and updates from the Greater Broadmarsh Advisory Group on the Nottingham City Council website.
The idea of bringing nature into cities is not a new one. It is now common knowledge that having greener and wilder urban areas is vital to improving the health and wellbeing of people living in increasingly dense cities. The 2020 Improving Access to Greenspace review by Public Health England stated that greenspace is a ‘natural capital’ that can help local authorities to address many issues, including improving health and wellbeing, reducing health inequalities and social care costs, improving social cohesion, and addressing the climate crisis. They state that, “In supporting the delivery of local health, social, environmental and economic priorities, good quality greenspace has the potential to deliver substantial benefits for public health and for wider local priorities at a relatively low cost.”
Concept Visualisation of reimagined Broadmarsh Shopping Centre created for Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust by Influence
A recent report from Inkcap Journal also demonstrated that some local councils in England have included rewilding in their current or future policy plans, with many of those councils using the term flexibly so that it makes sense in the context of their local areas. It is hoped that the announcement of a legally binding target for species abundance for 2030, as well as other environmental plans including rewilding and tree planting set out by the Environment Secretary George Eustice, will also encourage other local councils to consider what they can do to support the environment in their local areas.
London is another great example of a major city starting to adopt rewilding. The New London Plan includes a proposal for Urban Greening, “ensuring that all new major development includes an element of greening which contributes to making the city healthier, wilder or more resilient.” The plan includes using existing spaces, buildings, streets and roofs to become greener at the same time as the city becomes more densely populated. It is hoped that cities such as London and Nottingham can lead the way for other cities across the country, encouraging a much closer relationship between people and the natural world.
Lizzie de Lusignan
Lizzie is an MSci Zoology graduate from the University of Exeter, where she is now employed. She has always loved exploring nature and enjoys coastal walks, especially if there is a chance of spotting a seal! She became interested in the communication of conservation during her degree and since graduating she decided to continue her passion for conservation through writing. She has previously written articles for the Hong Kong-based conservation organisation Earth.org.