We make SPACE & PLACE

Richmond has a distinctive identity and sense of place, much of which is centred around the borough’s unique landscape and network of open green spaces.

Our parks and green spaces are well used and highly valued by our residents, who have told us that the quality of their environment is of primary importance. When we asked residents to describe Richmond in three words or less, by far the most popular word given was green (over 50%).

Alongside the 130 LBRUT managed parks and open spaces, there are also 2000 allotment plots and a number of formal sports and outdoor fitness facilities and public art sites, all of which increase opportunity for cultural participation within the borough’s green spaces. Richmond is also home to some of the country’s most iconic parks and landscapes including two Royal Parks, the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, the Thames Path and Marble Hill Park.

The borough’s rich history can also be seen in the built environment. Richmond has 821 listed buildings ¹, including the Octagon Room at Orleans House Gallery and the Grade II listed Teddington Library. Located on the Green in central Richmond is Richmond Lending Library which dates back to 1881 and is the oldest library in London still in use as a public library, and the Grade II listed Richmond Theatre which welcomes over a quarter of a million theatre goers annually and is one of the surviving works of theatre architect Frank Matcham.

Richmond has a renowned music heritage and more recently, the borough’s history, unique spaces and accessible location has attracted film and television production to the borough, with many popular films, documentaries, dramas and commercials being filmed in Richmond. The borough is home to Twickenham Film Studios and other creative businesses including publishers, advertising & marketing agencies and design & architecture firms, all of which contribute to the borough’s valuable cultural infrastructure.

It is clear that the borough’s natural environment, heritage and cultural assets have a key role to play in place making and supporting the success of the borough,² which only makes the fight against climate change more critical. In 2019 we declared a Climate Emergency and we are committed to combating climate change, improving air quality in the borough and becoming a carbon neutral organisation by 2030.

Over the next ten years our arts, library, parks and sport & fitness services will advocate for Richmond as a place locally, but also nationally and internationally, broadening Richmond’s distinctive identity and building a more resilient, responsible and sustainable borough.

“(Culture) makes a place great to live in”

How we will do this

• Over the next three to five years cultural services will play an active role in the borough’s post COVID-19 recovery, working with the Economic Development team and Visit Richmond to consider how our cultural assets can be used to attract people and investment back to the borough to support the recovery of our local communities and the Mayor of London’s vision of London as a global creative powerhouse.
• We will explore how we can work strategically with tourism and development partners so that culture can support the ‘Good Growth’ of London and identify opportunities to leverage new income and resources by embedding culture within future developments and economic initiatives as part of the borough’s Local Plan.
• Our libraries, parks, arts and sport & fitness facilities will continue to be key places for people to come together and participate in the social and cultural life of their local communities. We will invest in the care and preservation of these cultural assets to ensure they are maintained to the highest standards and that the history and heritage is preserved for future generations.
• We will commit to creating a sustainable legacy for future generations by maintaining the quality and high standards of our parks and working to protect and enhance the biodiversity and ecology of our green spaces in line with the local Biodiversity Action Plan and Climate Emergency Strategy (pdf, 8.6 MB).
• We will support the ambition to become the greenest local authority in London by reducing the energy demands from our buildings, minimising waste and eliminating single use plastic from the events we deliver and support local organisations and partners to do the same. We will consider how our services can contribute to tackling pollution and improving air quality (pdf, 4.1 MB) in the borough over the next four years, including continuing our ambitious tree planting programme and promoting active travel.
• Our arts service will be a catalyst for local artistic responses to the ecological crisis, starting in 2021 with Cultural Reforesting - an interdisciplinary artist research programme at Orleans House Gallery exploring how to renew our relationship with nature.

Next: Achieving our vision