Tate Britain breaks ground on Clore Garden

Tate Britain is not just planting a nicer forecourt. It is rebuilding the space in front of the museum into a permanent public garden — and work has now started. That matters because the bit outside a museum often decides how welcoming the whole place feels. For years, Tate Britain’s frontage has been more approach than destination. Now the gallery, the Royal Horticultural Society, and designer Tom Stuart-Smith are trying to turn it into somewhere people actually want to stay. ### What actually started this week? Groundworks have begun on the Clore Garden at Tate Britain on Millbank in London. Tate said the build is now underway, with the project set to create a new public green space around the gallery over the coming year. Trade press filled in the practical bit — Blakedown Landscapes has started clearing and excavation after Westminster planning permission came through. ### Who is making it? The garden is being designed by Tom Stuart-Smith, with architects Feilden Fowles involved in the wider scheme. Tate is delivering it with the RHS, while the money comes primarily from the Clore Duffield Foundation, with support from the Julia Rausing Trust. That mix matters — this is not a temporary art-world flourish, but a properly funded civic project with horticultural muscle behind it. ### What is the garden supposed to be? Basically, Tate wants the space outside the museum to work harder. The plan is for a softer, greener landscape with planting, outdoor learning space, and sculptures from Tate’s collection placed in the garden itself. Tate also says the design is meant to improve biodiversity and make the site feel calmer and more open to local residents, not just ticket-holding visitors heading indoors. ### Why involve the RHS? Because this is as much a horticulture project as a museum project. The RHS gives the scheme credibility as a serious public garden, not just decorative landscaping. It also links the project to the Chelsea Flower Show, where Tate and Stuart-Smith are presenting a garden in May 2026 that previews parts of the final Millbank design. After the show, that garden will be relocated and absorbed into the permanent site. ### When will people actually see it? Here the timing is a little messy. Tate’s current press material says the Clore Garden will open in 2027. But RHS material for the Chelsea show says the public opening is planned for autumn 2026. The safest read is that the visible transformation starts now, the Chelsea preview lands later this month, and the full public opening is targeted for late 2026 or 2027 depending on how the build phases are counted. ### Why does this matter beyond Tate? Because big museums increasingly need to justify themselves as public space, not just buildings full of objects. A garden changes who uses the site and how long they stay. It can pull in families, school groups, neighbors, and people who were never planning a gallery visit at all. In that sense, the free, everyday green space. ### What is the catch? The catch is that these projects are easy to announce and harder to maintain. Tate has already been recruiting its first head gardener, which is actually a good sign — it suggests the institution knows a public garden is not a one-off capital project but a living thing that needs ongoing care. If the upkeep holds, the garden could become part of Tate Britain’s identity rather than a nice launch-season add-on. ### Bottom line? This is a museum expansion without a new wing. Tate Britain is using landscape — art, planting, seating, and access — to remake its public face. Work has started, the Chelsea preview is imminent, and the real test is whether the finished garden feels like London gained a place, not just Tate gained better approach roads.