1. General information
Location and description of the intervention
City or FUA
Edinburgh
Region
Europe
Native title of the NBS intervention
Arcadia Nursery garden and building
Short description of the intervention
The Arcadia nursery is a new building located at the King’s Buildings Campus, Edinburgh and owned by the University of Edinburgh. The current intervention is about promoting ideas of free play and having elements of forest schools and natural play within the garden. As outdoor spaces associated with pre-schools is critical to the health and well being of children, this project is one of the very important initiatives in the city. It mixes indoor and outdoor play areas, and children can move between the eco-friendly building and a specially landscaped garden. The playrooms lead to a garden which enables 'nature' to be in close reach for the children. (ref 1, 4)
Address

Arcadia Nursery University of Edinburgh
Max Born Crescent
Edinburgh
EH9 3BF
United Kingdom

Location
Point location, which indicates where the NBS takes place
Type of area before implementation of the NBS
Unknown
Website of the intervention
https://www.arcadianursery.co.uk/
Timeline of intervention
Start date of the intervention (planning process)
unknown
Start date of intervention (implementation process)
2012
End date of the intervention
2014
Present stage of the intervention
Completed
Goals of the intervention
1. The nursery wants to promote the ideas of free play and have elements of forest schools and natural play within the garden.
2. The building is designed around a ‘free-play’ concept that encourages age groups to mix and which helps to develop children’s confidence, independence and creativity (ref 2)
Quantitative targets
Unknown
Monitoring indicators defined
Unknown
Sustainability challenge(s) addressed
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Green space creation and/or management
Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
Environmental education
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Enabling opportunities for physical activity
Improving physical health
Creation of opportunities for recreation
Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)
Sustainable consumption
Implementation activities
The outdoor space is formed into three distinct zones and is considered as another ‘playroom’ for the nursery, used every day by all age groups to encourage physical activity and engagement with nature. An ‘enclosed’ garden with a covered terrace which is directly accessible from the nursery building provides a space for children to play. Several ‘open play’ features in the garden include grass steps, a bubble bridge, water pump, raised vegetable planters and a potting shed. (ref 1, 3)
play trees, log ladders and sand pit. There is a meadow zone with long grass and meadow flowers to encourage birds and insects (Ref 2)
Type of NBS project
Creation of new green areas
Knowledge creation and awareness raising
NBS domain and interventions
Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented
Grey infrastructure featuring greens
Green playgrounds and school grounds
Parks and urban forests
Other
Community gardens and allotments
Other
Please specify "other parks or (semi)natural urban green area"
Meadow gardens (ref 2)
Please specify "other allotments and community gardens"
Playrooms lead to a garden lined with grassy steps (ref 2)
Please specify the number of plots or allotment gardens
Unknown
Vegetation Type
Grass
Trees
Flower beds
Garden beds
Please specify how many trees were planted
Unknown
Please specify other amenities offered by the NBS
Educational playground for children (ref 1, 3)
Amenities offered by the NBS
Playgrounds
Sports areas and equipment
Educational and research amenities (nature protection centre, monitoring stations)
Other
Services
Expected ecosystem services delivered
Cultural services
Inspiration for culture, art and design
Recreation
Intellectual interactions (scientific and / or educational)
Scale
Spatial scale
Sub-microscale: Street scale (including buildings)
Beneficiaries
Primary Beneficiaries
Public sector institution (e.g. school or hospital)
Researchers/University
Citizens or community groups
Young people and children
Governance
Governance arrangements
Led by non-government actors
Non-government actors
Private sector/Corporate/Business
Researchers, university
Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative
The main Client was the University of Edinburgh while other roles were: Mansell plc (Contractor), ERZ (Landscape Architect); Malcolm Fraser Architects (Architect); AED (Structural Engineer); HarleyHaddow (Building Services); Blebo Consultants (Arboricultural Clerk of Works); Applied Ecology (Ecologist) (ref 2)
Key actors - initiating organization
Public sector institution
Researchers/university
Land owners
Educational actor (schools or universities)
Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)
Private sector/corporate actor/company
Researchers/university
Land owners
Educational actor (schools or universities)
Participatory methods/forms of community involvement used
Consultation (e.g. workshop, surveys, community meetings, town halls)
Policy drivers
NBS intervention implemented in response to an Regional Directive/Strategy
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a national regulations/strategy/plan
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a local regulation/strategy/plan
Unknown
Mandatory or voluntary intervention
Voluntary (spontaneous)
Enablers
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS vision/strategy/plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS section/part in a more general plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of city network or regional partnerships focused on NBS - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of GI / NBS research project - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Subsidies/investment for GI / NBS in the city - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Co-finance for NBS
No
Co-financing governance arrangements
No
Was this co-governance arrangement already in place, or was it set up specifically for this NBS?
No
Financing
Total cost
€100,000 - €500,000
What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements?
Unknown
What are the total amount of expected annual maintenance costs?
Unknown
What is the expected annual maintenance costs of the NBS or GI elements?
Unknown
Please specify cost savings
Unknown
Please specify total cost (EUR)
Approximately £2.5 million with the key client being the University of Edinburgh. (ref 4, 5)
Source(s) of funding
Private Foundation/Trust
Type of fund(s) used
Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
Other
Please specify other type of fund used
Award
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Business models
Green education model
Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model?
Private for-profit actor (e.g. firm, insurer)
Type of innovation
Technological
Product innovation
Social
Cultural innovation
Please specify technological innovation
This project attained 100% in both the Materials and Pollution BREEAM categories. The building uses highly sustainable and recyclable materials. The building is already present on a site with low risk of flooding but also incorporates sufficient Sustainable Drainage Systems (SUDS). (Ref 1)
-This project is an exemplar that shows what can be delivered if parents, staff and stakeholders involved in nursery education are forward thinking and ambitious. There are a number of innovations on this project from the design and layout of the space to the resolution of concerns from the local planning department and technical solutions (ref 4)
Please specify social innovation
The garden focuses on the well being and health of children by immersion in nature and builds upon the idea of woodland nurseries, natural and free play. (ref 2) Planting is designed to be sensory and colourful and the 37 mature trees on the site have been retained to create cover and character. (Ref 3)
-The Nursery mixes indoor and outdoor play areas, and children can move between the eco-friendly building and a specially landscaped garden.
Novelty level of the innovation
The innovation is completely new without connections to previous initiative(s)
Please specify novelty level of the innovation
mentioned as a unique initiative in project descriptions (Ref 4) : There are a number of innovations on this project from the design and layout of the space to the resolution of concerns from the local planning department and technical solutions to the problems associated with the trees. This is a unique project on many levels that sets a new standard for outdoor pre school and school play environments. (Ref 4)
Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Please specify Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Impacts, benefits
Environmental impacts
Green space and habitat
Increased green space area
Increase in protected green space areas
Please specify other economic impact
The building itself is a nursery and the users (parents of the children) needs to pay for the fees (ref 1, 7).
Description of environmental benefits
1. The life cycle of the building is considered, the materials used are from sustainable sources and waste generation is kept to a minimum. 2. A large garden that the children can use, which includes a vegetable patch, fruit trees and play areas. 3. The site chosen for the new nursery was well covered with mature trees and the layout reflects the architect’s desire to retain as many healthy trees as possible, in order to create a sheltered and protected garden environment for the children. To avoid disturbance to tree roots, the building was raised above ground level and had to be a lightweight structure so that only short pile foundations were required. (ref 1, 3)
Economic impacts
Other
Description of economic benefits
The building itself is a nursery and the users (parents of the children) needs to pay for the fees (ref 1, 7).
Social and cultural impacts
Safety
Increased perception of safety
Social justice and cohesion
Improved access to urban green space
Health and wellbeing
Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
Cultural heritage and sense of place
Improvement in people’s connection to nature
Education
Increased support for education and scientific research
Description of social and cultural benefits
1. Develop children’s confidence, independence and creativity by allowing age groups to mix, by encouraging children to choose which activities they would like to participate in and whether they would like to be inside or outside, rather than having their day dictated to them. The layout reflects these ideas while ensuring that the children are safe and easily supervised. It allows the children to grow in a safe environment whilst integrating into the local community and city-life. 2. Each space is designed to promote a wide range of both structured and unstructured play opportunities. A large sculptural treehouse under the existing mature elm curves through the gardens connecting the spaces. (ref 1, 5)
Type of reported impacts
Achieved impacts
Indicators
-The design stage BREEAM assessment achieved a high score of 82.2%long with a requirement to achieve BREAAM Excellent (ref 3)
- the University of Edinburgh was keen to create a highly sustainable building and felt that the Nursery lent itself as an educational tool where children could learn about approaching life in a sustainable manner. (ref 3)
-Consideration was given to the specification of all materials with the result that the materials specified are renewable, have low embodied energy and a minimal carbon footprint and ensured that a high indoor air quality was achieved (ref 3)
Environmental, social and economic impacts
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Analysis of specific impact categories
Job creation: The NBS created ...
Paid employment positions
Negative impacts: Did the project cause any problems or concerns?
No information was found regarding negative impacts of the project
COVID-19 pandemic
The nursery is open but they are following advice in line with the NHS, Foreign and Commonwealth Office and other relevant agencies, including following good hygiene measures. (ref 7)
Methods of impact monitoring
Process of recording NBS impacts
Collection of monitoring data continuously throughout the project to aid evaluation
Methods used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
Focus groups
Questionnaire surveys / online surveys
Evidence for use of assessment
Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process
Unknown
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/evaluation reports
No evidence in public records
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
Impact assessment mechanism
Name of any specific impact assessment tools
Unknown
Use of GIS in mapping impacts
No evidence in public records
Citizen involvement
Citizens involvement in assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Please specify other modes of citizen involvement in evaluation/assessment
Unknown
Citizens involvement in the analysis of the assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Follow-up to the evaluation / assessment
Unknown
References
Web links relevant to the intervention
breeam: case-study
architects journal website
Landscape institute weblink
Trada case-studies link
Documents relevant to the intervention
Attachment Size
Stora Enso Building Solutions brochure (3.26 MB) 3.26 MB
List of references
1. Breeam (no date) King’s Buildings Arcadia Nursery – University of Edinburgh. Available at: https://www.breeam.com/case-studies/education/kings-buildings-arcadia-nursery-university-of-edinburgh/. Accessed on 26th August, 2020.
2. WoodAwards (no date) Arcadia Nursery. Available at: https://woodawards.com/portfolio/arcadia-nursery/?fbclid=IwAR34KcKfZBAY6mZJtc1yWMJmrBkGgoP7Lbj8D9moTimHucO1NUxSlJLQZi8. Accessed on 26th August, 2020.
3. ERZ (no date) Arcadia Nursery. Learning and Play Projects. Available on: https://www.erzstudio.co.uk/projects/arcadia-nursery. Accessed on 26th August, 2020.
4. Landscape Institute. (2016). Arcadia Nursery. Accessed: https://my.landscapeinstitute.org/case-studies#list. Accessed on 26th August, 2020.
5. Barraclough C. (2015). Building the Arcadia Nursery: the client's view. Accessed: https://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/buildings/building-the-arcadia-nursery-the-clients-view/8684930.article. Accessed on 26th August, 2020.
6. Trada. (no date). Arcadia Nursery, Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh. https://www.trada.co.uk/case-studies/arcadia-nursery-edinburgh-city-of-edinburgh/. Accessed on 26th August, 2020.
7. Arcadia (no date) Arcadia @ Kings Buildings. Available at: https://www.arcadianursery.co.uk/locations/kings-buildings/. Accessed on 26th August, 2020.
Attachments
Attachment Size
university-of-edinburgh-arcadia-nursery-edinburgh-uk-english.pdf (3.26 MB) 3.26 MB
Comments and notes
Comments
Section 5 /innovation : Not much information was available on the briefly mentioned SUDS scheme at the site, despite extensive search. The building is already present on a site with low risk of flooding but also incorporates sufficient Sustainable Drainage Systems (SUDS). (Ref 1)
Additional insights
Arcadia Nursery has won the following Awards:
2015; Highly Commended, Landscape Institute Awards 2015
2015; Winner, Education & Public Sector, The Wood Awards 2015
2015; Winner, Scottish Design Awards, Best Educational Building
2015; Winner, Wood For Good / Forestry Commission Scotland Award
2015 RIBA Award for Scotland
2015 RIAS Award


Pictures of the NBS
/sites/default/files/nbs/images/arcadia-nursery-edinburgh-city-of-edinburgh.jpg
/sites/default/files/nbs/images/erz-arcadia-nursery-tree-walkway.jpg
Public Images
Arcadia Nursery
Arcadia Nursery
Photo by ERZ (erzstudio)