 Also in 2002, the renowned landscape architect, Kim Wilkie, launched the restoration management plan for the network of avenues around Ham House. In 2003 it was announced that Heritage Lottery Fund had awarded a grant of £2.2m for London’s Arcadia and projects were started to regenerate the Ham Avenues and the riverside. The Ham and Petersham Association has been very involved with the projects – rebuilding and painting the white gates on the Great South Avenue; helping to plant the area around the new board walk on the bottom of the Ham House field; replanting trees on the Copse and organising volunteer days to undertake the Avenue tree pruning work. Our photo shows the wild flowers planted in the Great South Avenue that runs from Ham Common down to Ham House. The flowers were planted as part of the Arcadia project at the time of the recent restoration work. It is one of the Ham and Petersham Association’s main aims to maintain the quality of our special semi-rural open environment, in the same spirit as our predecessors fought against development in the area to save the magnificent view of the Ham and Petersham river reaches from Richmond Hill. This action culminated in the 1902 Act. For more information link to London's Arcadia website |