From the TCPA archive: the continued importance of Green Infrastructure

14th November 2024

This blog by Charlotte Llewellyn was originally published on the TCPA archive website.

Blending urban and rural life

Although not yet known by that name, green infrastructure was at the heart of Ebenezer Howard’s plan for the Garden City. Howard’s utopian vision for blending the best of urban and rural life not only envisaged better access to the countryside but also the return of nature to the heart of the community.

This idea was brought to life in the Garden Cities at Letchworth and Welwyn. This idea is exemplified in the design of Letchworth Garden City. Raymond Unwin and Barry Parker’s master plan aimed to work with the grain of the landscape, providing generous amounts of green space and enhancing the existing natural environment. Notably, only one tree was felled during the original construction of Letchworth.

Green New Towns

Moreover, the importance of green infrastructure continued in the designing and building of many of the UK’s New Towns. The Milton Keynes Park Trust and Nene Park Trust in Peterborough continue to provide helpful case studies; illustrating what is possible when stewardship bodies are established to look after green spaces and the importance of endowing these organisations with the proper funds and resources.

Making the case for ‘unofficial wilderness’

Green Infrastructure continued to be an important issue in the Town & Country Planning journal, with a range of articles written from the 1970s to the early 2000s on topics such as biodiversity, urban greening, ecology and planning, and greening local economies.

For example, in the September 1983 edition, the article ‘Where the grass grows greener’ makes a passionate case for the ‘unofficial wilderness’- beyond the manicured parks and ‘lollipop trees’ that often appear in cities and towns, or the ‘green deserts’ of sterile farmland that are found in the countryside. ‘When children want adventure, when birds need safe nestings or butterﬂies a food plant on which to lay their eggs, it is the unofﬁcial spaces that they choose.’

The article notes that diversity of habitat should be a prime objective when it comes to urban greening, ‘Trees have a valuable role to play, but endless tree planting is not enough: we need to stimulate a concern for wildﬂower meadows, pools and marshy places, too.’

Today, green Infrastructure remains high on the TCPA agenda. The TCPA’s work on long-term stewardship is also helping to ensure that green infrastructure continues to deliver benefits for people and the planet.

From the TCPA archive: Green Infrastructure and the TCPA