Royal Pavilion Garden gets nearly £1.5m more to cover rising building costs

The restoration of the Royal Pavilion Garden has more than £1.4 million in extra funding: £976,231 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund and £500,000 from Historic England. Brighton & Hove Museums^1,3 and Brighton & Hove City Council⁴ announced the money this week.

It is there to cover a gap. Building costs have climbed since the Heritage Fund’s original award of £4.3 million in January 2024, and the top-up lets the project, called A Garden Fit for a King, go ahead as first planned.

“Like many major capital projects, the costs of construction, materials and labour have increased significantly since the original funding was awarded in 2024,” said Hedley Swain, chief executive of Brighton & Hove Museums.

The garden was laid out for George IV in the 1820s and is Grade II listed. Historic England put it on its Heritage at Risk Register in 2017, and getting it off that list is the long-term aim.

The works will restore the Regency layout and planting, mend paths and entrances, and add new interpretation for visitors. Lighting and security get an upgrade, and there is work on biodiversity and access too. The support page for the appeal also lists more efficient irrigation, drought-resistant planting and protection for the roots of the garden’s heritage elms.

The whole project is worth more than £8 million. Besides the Heritage Fund, Historic England and the council, the Garfield Weston Foundation and the Wolfson Foundation have put money in. The rest still has to be found, and the museums say it will be raised over the next year.

The final plans and budget go to the council’s Cabinet next week. If they are approved, the main works should start in November.

“Only a handful of cities can claim a royal palace, and Brighton & Hove is fortunate to have the Royal Pavilion and its beautiful garden right in the centre of our city,” said Labour councillor David McGregor, the Cabinet member for economy, culture, heritage and tourism.