The Horniman Museum and Gardens is located in Forest Hill, South East London. It first opened as the Surrey House Museum in 1890 in the Horniman family residence. In 1901 it changed its name to the Horniman Museum when it re-opened in a new purpose-built museum building after Frederick Horniman gave the museum and gardens as a free gift to the people for their education, recreation and enjoyment – a vision which still remains central to the Horniman today. The museum looks after high-quality collections spanning the natural, multi-cultural and musical worlds, as well as 16 acres of well-managed urban open space, community-based educational and leisure programmes and a wide range of performance, events and activities.

The design focuses on three key areas across the estate; the Natural History Gallery and Nature Explorers’ Action Zone in the south-east corner of the Museum; a Nature Explorers’ Adventure Zone in the north corner of the Gardens; and a Sustainable Gardening Zone in the east corner of the Gardens. These three spaces will encourage learning and wellbeing through exploration and play, and support people to make changes on a local and personal level to nurture the planet.

Driven by the notion that a love of nature and time spent in natural environments is a value we all share, new facilities have been designed to enable the Horniman to build on its existing audiences, including parents and children who visit frequently. Additionally, a key objective is to improve outreach to presently underrepresented audiences from ethnically diverse and disadvantaged socio-economic groups and those with disabilities, to broaden the Horniman’s audience so that it matches the diversity of London’s population.

The Natural History Gallery is renewed with great care for its historic character. The existing lead roof, believed to be original, has deteriorated after decades of service, with leaks and temperature extremes affecting both visitors and the collection. Earlier conservation architects
safeguarded much of the building, and this next phase builds on that legacy, ensuring the roof is repaired in a sensitive, like-for-like manner. Alongside this conservation work, insulation and environmental upgrades will create a more stable, sustainable setting, protecting the gallery for generations to come.