Plan to Boost Biodiversity in Wormwood Scrubs Welcomed
Scheme will see ponds created as part of drainage scheme
Wormwood Scrubs
August 13, 2025
Wormwood Scrubs is to see new ponds, meadows and grasslands in a bid to boost biodiversity and improve drainage across the site.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council is seeking a supplier to deliver the works, which also include tree planting and the creation of a Sustainable Urban Drainage scheme (SUDs).
The proposals detailed in the tender form the Scrubs’ AEM (Alternative Ecological Mitigation) Masterplan, approved by the Wormwood Scrubs Charitable Trust Committee in December and funded with £3.8 million from HS2.
The intention, as written in the tender, is to “enhance biodiversity on the Scrubs and at the same time improve drainage across the site to better manage surface water and improve access”.
Wormwood Scrubs is the largest open space in the borough and one of the largest areas of common land in London.
Its eastern half is a large expanse of low-cut grass with a number of sports pitches while its western side has areas of woodland, scrub and meadow.
Its facilities include the Linford Christie Outdoor Sports Centre with the Wormwood Scrubs prison situated on its southern edge.
The Scrubs’ meadow was recently granted the status of a Local Nature Reserve, protecting it from future potentially harmful developments.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council is the sole corporate Trustee of the Wormwood Scrubs Charitable Trust, which manages the space. The responsibility for the Trust and its affairs lies with the Wormwood Scrubs Charitable Trust Committee, which consists of three councillors and two non-voting co-opted members.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council’s tender is for a supplier to both deliver the capital works to the Scrubs and maintenance for a 10-year period. The total cost is given as around £3 million.
On the capital works, the tender states, “This phase of work should be completed in 6-8 months and will include the creation of a SUDs (Sustainable Urban Drainage scheme) made up of a series of scrapes and swales to the south of the site and the northwest corner of the site.
“Retention ponds will be created in the existing wet woodlands in the southeast of the site. Tree planting will take place at various locations and existing vegetation will be improved along with the creation of meadows and grasslands. Hibernaculas will be created and bird and bat boxes installed.”
A tender submission deadline of September 4 is listed. The contract is expected to run from January 2, 2026 to February 1, 2031, with a possible extension to the same date in 2036 depending on performance.
Sir Stephen Waley-Cohen, Chairman of Trustees of the Friends of Wormwood Scrubs, an independent charity with more than 500 members, said the Friends “welcome” the Masterplan.
“These are the works funded by HS2 and designed to enhance the ecological biodiversity of the Scrubs, without interfering with its charitable purpose in accordance with the Act of Parliament which created the Wormwood Scrubs Charitable Trust, of which Hammersmith and Fulham are Trustees, namely the exercise and recreation of the population of the metropolis.
“There is always a balance to be struck between this primary purpose and the preservation of nature, and the Friends welcome the Masterplan as achieving this balance.”
Sir Stephen added the Scrubs “is not a park, but a common, metropolitan open land, and ‘more wild than tamed’, which is how it must remain despite the pressures of growing population in this part of West London”.
The funding provided by HS2 is to fulfil a legal agreement between the council and High Speed Two Limited.
The agreement came about to ensure ecological improvements are delivered at the Scrubs following the construction of major HS2 infrastructure at Old Oak Common.
The space is also expected to come under growing pressure due to the increasing number of people living locally.
In June plans were revealed for a new town by the Scrubs with 25,000 homes. To be called Old Oak, it is hoped to be built within 30 years and would span the boroughs of Brent and Ealing as well as Hammersmith and Fulham.
Ben Lynch - Local Democracy Reporter