Thornton Heath Nature Garden

In collaboration with Croydon Council, Meristem Design has created Thornton Heath Community Nature Garden, transforming an unused, overgrown site on Colliers Water Lane into a thriving green space for learning and play. Funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, the garden provides school children with opportunities to connect with nature through gardening, outdoor classes, and hands-on exploration. 

The aim of the nature garden project to improve the existing area and provide a vibrant and purposeful green space to support local school children’s learning. By creating the community garden, the goal was to increase access to nature for the children and foster pride in Thornton Heath, contributing to Croydon Council’s wider district centre regeneration.

The project was part of Croydon Council’s £833k programme of green space improvements across five district centres, funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. In Thornton Heath, the works included the design and delivery of a vibrant nature garden, complete with educational, ecological, and play-focused features.

The garden includes:

• Corten steel planters
• Oak amphitheatre seating
• Bug hotels
• Timber shed with rainwater harvesting and a green roof
• Stepping logs
• Biodiverse and pollinator-friendly planting
• Oak sleeper benches
• New bespoke railings

The Thornton Heath Community Nature Garden was designed to maximise the educational, ecological, and social value of a once underused site. The approach combined strategic design with input from local schoolchildren to ensure the garden was functional, engaging and inspiring.

Features were selected to support biodiversity, provide opportunities for play and discovery, and create outdoor teaching spaces that the school could utilise year-round. Sustainable infrastructure was embedded throughout, including rainwater harvesting, a green-roofed shed, and durable materials to ensure longevity. The planting scheme balanced native woodland species, perennial mixes, and edible crops, offering a sensory and seasonal experience.

Native species in the garden include:

• Sesleria autumnalis
• Polystichum setiferum 
• Primula vulgaris 
• Anemone nemorosa 
• Red campion (Silene dioica) 
• Hyacinthoides non-scripta
• Galanthus

The creation of the Thornton Heath Community Nature Garden has delivered wide-ranging benefits for both Whitehorse Manor Primary School and the surrounding community. By transforming a neglected, overgrown site into a safe, purposeful, and biodiverse space, the garden provides a living classroom – enabling hands-on science lessons, outdoor reading sessions, and gardening clubs that spark curiosity and build environmental awareness. For the community it represents a space that restores pride in the area while supporting climate resilience and Croydon’s wider vision of greener, healthier, and more welcoming district centres.