Wild Urban Gardens

with Steve Williams

Friday 2 May 2025

10am - 4pm (arrive at 9.30 for coffee/tea)

£140

Group Size - 10 people

Over 80% of the UK population live in urban areas and it’s often in our towns and cities where having some kind of access to a connection with the natural world is most urgently needed.  As pressures of modern day living have seen the rise of plastic grass and front gardens turned over to concreted driveways it feels important to offer alternative visions for how our urban spaces can offer refuge for wildlife, help mitigate the effects of climate change and provide vital opportunities for intimate moments of nature connection.

Steve Williams is well known for his innovative approach to ecological design in an urban context.  He’s particularly interested in finding accessible and affordable solutions for clients wanting to create gardens with greater opportunities for biodiversity whilst also functioning as places to sit, play and relax.  These are places where human needs can be met but where other living beings, wild animals and plants, are encouraged to take advantage of opportunities for habitat and food, to move in and out of the space and create a sense of wild porosity.

In this workshop Steve will discuss his approach to design which uses fluid and flexible solutions to achieve affordable and sustainable results.  He’ll explore creative ways of using repurposed materials, planting techniques, edible planting and creating habitat.    He’ll use examples from a range of projects including small low budget urban gardens to larger public spaces.  The workshop will be suitable for both professional designers as well as those looking for innovative ideas for their own gardens.

Steve’s first degree was in Photographic Art at the University of Wales in Newport.  He then trained in horticulture at Broomfield Hall in Derbyshire and garden design at the Cotswold Gardening School.  He currently runs his own design studio based in London and the South West.  In 2023 he collaborated with Jonathan Davies as Wild City Studio  on a garden for the Chelsea Flower Show which has since been relocated to Markfield Park in Tottenham, London.  Their ambition for the project is to “reimagine our urban spaces to show the clear impact nature connection can have in our urban communities”.

Refreshments

Alison will prepare a vegetarian lunch including produce from the garden. Homemade biscuits will be offered on arrival and we will round up the day with tea and cake. If you have any specific dietary requests do let us know on the booking form.

What to Bring

Check the weather forecast before you travel and ensure you bring appropriate clothing, whether that’s waterproofs or sun hats, or possibly both!  You may wish to bring a notebook and camera too.

Getting Here

Directions will be emailed to you a couple of weeks before the workshop. Use Damson Farm rather than the postcode on Google Maps.

Cancellation policy

As a small business it’s not sustainable to offer refunds. However if you need to cancel your place up to 28 days before the event you will be offered a credit towards another workshop.   After that time, the offer only applies if we’ve been able to re-sell the place. It’s not possible to promote cancelled places for re-sale less than 4 days before the event.