Royal Pavilion Gardens Restoration: Budget Rises £1.6m to £8.038m as Cabinet Approves Contract
The Royal Pavilion seen through the garden (Photo: Kailash Reddy KU via Unsplash)
Brighton & Hove City Council’s Cabinet has approved a £1.6m increase to the budget for restoring the Royal Pavilion Garden, taking the total to £8.038m, and has given officers the authority to appoint a main contractor. The council’s published decision list shows both recommendations were approved at the meeting on 15 October 2026.
The council says it is not putting in any more of its own money. The extra cost is to be covered by National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, a Historic England grant that has not yet been confirmed, and donations raised by the Royal Pavilion and Museums Trust. The report expects work to start on 9 November 2026 and finish in November 2027.
Source: Brighton & Hove City Council, Cabinet decision list, 15 October 2026
What Cabinet agreed
Where the £8.038m comes from
The report says £6.987m of the budget is secured and £1.051m is still to be secured. The council’s own contribution is £0.750m: £0.440m borrowed and £0.310m from capital receipts. Interest on the borrowing is estimated at about £46,000 a year, based on rates on 2 October 2026.
The £1.6m increase is broken down in the report as £0.550m of secured National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, a £0.500m Historic England grant application, and £0.550m of Trust donations that have not yet been secured. The Trust says its fundraising is on track. The council has also applied to Arts Council England for £0.085m.
The garden’s main funder is the National Lottery Heritage Fund, which awarded £4,369,755 in January 2024, according to Brighton & Hove Museums. The Wolfson Foundation announced a further £100,000 in January 2026, according to Brighton Journal.
Why the cost has gone up
The report blames the knock-on effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, planning delays, construction inflation, higher material costs and extra professional fees. In August 2023 the estimated total was £6.264m. By detailed design in December 2025 it had risen to £8.228m. A review of the design and delivery approach brought the forecast down to £7.139m by February 2026.
Then came the tender. The council ran a two-stage competition. Fourteen firms expressed an interest, four were shortlisted and two submitted tenders. The report says that reflects market conditions and contractor capacity, not a problem with the process. Blakedown Landscapes was named the preferred contractor as the most economically advantageous bid.
After negotiation and value engineering, the proposed contract sum is £5.174m. The tender still came in £1.476m above the funding that had been awarded and planned. The National Lottery Heritage Fund has since awarded another £0.976m, which cut most of the gap. The £8.038m budget includes contingency of 12.5% on works and 7.5% on other costs.
What the restoration will deliver
The restoration covers the Grade II listed garden beside the Royal Pavilion. According to the council and Brighton & Hove Museums, the works include:
The council says refurbishing the toilets, which will be leased to the Trust together with a new concession, should cut its running costs by about £24,000 a year. Operating costs were £91,000 in 2025, including extra maintenance and security.
Why the garden is on the Heritage at Risk Register
Historic England added the garden to its Heritage at Risk Register in 2017. Brighton and Hove News reported in 2019 that the reasons included heavy visitor use, erosion and declining historic character. Brighton & Hove Museums says John Nash designed the garden in the 1820s for King George IV and calls it a rare Regency Picturesque landscape in a precarious state.
The council says the main aim of the project is to get the garden off the register. The land is leased and managed by the Trust, and the council is the freeholder. Planning permission was granted in 2024.
Antisocial behaviour and the City Safe Zone
The report says the garden has considerable levels of antisocial behaviour, particularly in the early hours. A City Safe Zone scheme led by council officers, with National Lottery Heritage Fund support, is being developed for the garden and New Road.
The plans include visible safety marshals during higher-risk periods, outreach and support for vulnerable people, and work with local venues to improve night-time safety. Public Health has committed £50,000 to the pilot, with £35,000 of match funding from city stakeholders. The council hopes the model could be used in other parts of the city.
What if the money does not arrive
The report says officers have prepared a list of work packages that could be dropped if the £1.051m is not secured. It does not publish the list. The council says it would protect the purposes the Lottery grant requires and keep the project inside the funding it has.
If costs go over the contingency, the report says any remaining overspend would be shared equally between the council and the Trust under a Collaboration Agreement signed in September 2026. It also warns that delays could mean more inflation, extra fees and changes to the order of seasonal planting.
The ice rink
The report says the project team tried to find a way for the Royal Pavilion Ice Rink to return to its usual site this winter, but work will be happening there all winter and delaying the start would carry significant cost and funding problems. We reported on the council’s plan to bring the rink back in 2027 at the Old Steine in our article on the ice rink moving to the Old Steine.
Questions councillors submitted
Four councillors submitted written questions on the garden for the meeting, according to the council papers. The papers do not include the answers.
Royal Pavilion Gardens restoration: your questions answered
How much will the Royal Pavilion Garden restoration cost?
Cabinet approved a revised total budget of £8.038m on 15 October 2026, up £1.6m. The proposed contract with the builder is £5.174m.
Who is paying for it?
The National Lottery Heritage Fund is the biggest funder at £5.346m. The rest comes from Trust fundraising and other external contributions, other public sector grants and the council’s £0.750m.
Is the council putting in more money?
No. The report says no additional direct council funding is requested.
Who will do the work?
Blakedown Landscapes was named the preferred contractor after a competitive tender, subject to the funding and contract being finalised.
When will work start and finish?
The report expects work to start on 9 November 2026 and finish in November 2027.
Will the garden close during the works?
The report does not say whether the garden will close or which parts will be fenced off. We will update this when the council or Brighton & Hove Museums confirms.
Why is the garden on the Heritage at Risk Register?
Historic England added it in 2017. The project aims to restore it so it can come off the register.
What is a Changing Places toilet?
It is a larger accessible toilet with extra equipment for people who cannot use a standard accessible toilet. The council says the one in the garden will be free to use with a RADAR key.
Will the ice rink come back to the Royal Pavilion?
Not this winter. The council says it plans to bring the rink back in 2027 at the Old Steine.
What we still do not know
The papers do not say whether Historic England has approved the £0.5m, whether the garden will close during the works, or which work packages would be cut if funding falls short. They also do not say how the council will answer the councillors’ questions. We have not found a public announcement of the Historic England decision.
What happens next
The report’s own programme puts contract signing on 22 October 2026. More is under Brighton and Hove City Council, heritage, Royal Pavilion Gardens and cabinet decision on ImJustBrighton.
Sources
- Brighton & Hove City Council: Cabinet decision list, 15 October 2026
- Brighton & Hove City Council: decision page, item 56, Royal Pavilion Gardens restoration project
- Cabinet report: Royal Pavilion Gardens restoration project
- Cabinet papers: written questions from members, 15 October 2026
- Cabinet agenda and documents, 15 October 2026
- Brighton & Hove City Council: £4 million grant for the Royal Pavilion Garden
- Brighton & Hove City Council: first sign of things to come in the Royal Pavilion Garden
- Brighton & Hove Museums: Royal Garden restoration
- Brighton & Hove Museums: Royal Pavilion Garden restoration news, 7 August 2024
- Brighton and Hove News: Royal Pavilion Gardens wins money to draw up regeneration plan, 3 December 2019
- Brighton Journal: Wolfson Foundation awards £100,000 grant towards restoration of the Royal Pavilion Garden
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