Some projects stay with you long after the last plant goes in. The memorial garden at Cilcain Village Hall is one of them.
In 2017 we were asked to transform the old school yard beside the village hall into a memorial garden for David Johnson, a resident who had given a huge amount of time to reinvigorating the hall and establishing its weekly community café. It was a brief that carried real weight. The garden needed to honour someone who had brought people together, so it had to become a place where people would continue to gather.
From concrete yard to secluded garden
The starting point was an unremarkable, south-facing concrete yard, enclosed by the hall and its old stone walls, with a narrow kissing gate and a large conifer crowding the entrance. The potential was obvious: a sheltered, sunny space with a strong sense of enclosure and a direct relationship with the building.
Our design was built around two simple ideas: draw in and dwell. We opened up the entrance by removing the conifer, reshaping the planting bed and replacing the old gate. Once inside, the space widens into a calm gravel garden where visitors are encouraged to slow down, sit and spend time. Memorial artwork on the walls helps create an intimate, almost “outdoor room” quality, a space that feels part of the hall rather than separate from it.
Made by local hands
From the outset we wanted the garden to be rooted in its place and made by the community it serves. The centrepiece is a long oak and stone bench, built by local craftspeople, that runs along the face of the hall. Chunky oak slats rest on a dry stone base that echoes the limestone walls around it, and the bench curves gently as it follows the line of the building.
Above the bench, slate plaques carry a line from Victor Hugo: “A garden to walk in, and immensity to dream in.” It captures the spirit of the space perfectly. Within the gravel garden sits a sculpture by local artist Nick Eames, adding a quiet focal point that catches the morning sun beautifully.
Planting shaped by the site
The planting palette was derived directly from local conditions. Curved steel edging defines a series of beds that respond to the patterns of light and shade across the yard. Along the shaded base of the south wall, dense swathes of ferns and black mondo grass create a cool, lush backdrop. In the sunnier areas, beds of ornamental grasses, including the soft, moving Stipa tenuissima, are threaded with flowering plants such as Verbena bonariensis, Alliums and Eryngium. Specimen grasses behind the bench soften its edge and tie the hard and soft landscape together.
The result is a garden with year-round structure and texture that changes through the seasons, from the purple globes of Alliums in early summer to the bronze seed heads of grasses glowing in autumn light.
Going from strength to strength
What gives us the most pleasure is how the garden has grown since 2017. It has been lovingly looked after by a volunteer team from the village hall, and the planting has matured into something richer and fuller than any drawing could show.
The garden has also been opened up directly from the hall, allowing it to work as outdoor seating for the community café and as a space for yoga classes. What began as a memorial has become a true outdoor hub for the village, enjoyed by residents and visitors alike.
That, we think, is the best tribute a memorial garden could offer: a place that keeps bringing people together, just as David did.
We would like to thank the village hall committee and the volunteers whose care has made the garden what it is today. It was a privilege to be part of it.
We were really impressed with Land Studio. They are creative, a delight to work with and captured our vision and their own vision perfectly.
Shahina Ahmad, Principal of Eden Girls’ School, Waltham Forest.