Herefordshire’s RHS Gold Medal-winning garden designer, Sara Edwards, is proud to be part of an award-winning team working on Dr Roisin Hyde’s BeeBank project—a groundbreaking initiative made possible through the Innovate UK Women in Innovation Award.
A leader in sustainable garden design and landscaping innovation, Sara Edwards is redefining how landscapes integrate modern methods of construction. Through her No.30 Design Studio, she recently won Herefordshire Business Awards Innovator of the Year 2024 for her SCULPTS (Sustainable Concrete Unique Landscaping 3D Printed Technology Solutions) project, which moves away from the traditional take-make-waste model towards a circular economy by incorporating recycled materials and off-site manufacturing techniques to reduce waste. Her expertise in large-scale horticultural installations, including RHS show gardens, makes her a key contributor to the BeeBank project, which will see its prototype installed this summer at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, as the final stage of the Pollination Trail at the Hive pavilion.
The project is led by Dr Roisin Hyde, an architect and digital manufacturing expert, and a WWF Earthshot 2023 finalist, pioneering novel materials—particularly 3D-printed net-zero concrete—with a vision to transform construction into a beautiful, resilient, and regenerative built environment where both people and nature can thrive.
Her BeeBank is a hexagonal modular system designed to provide wild bee-friendly habitats along urban and rural networks, acting as crucial B-Lines to reconnect fragmented ecosystems, demonstrating how cutting-edge technology and sustainable materials can be used to create net-zero structures that provide shelter and food for pollinators while setting a precedent for future environmentally responsible construction.
This female-led collaboration mirrors the teamwork of the worker bee, bringing together specialists from diverse fields:
- Dr Roisin Hyde – Architect & Digital Manufacturing Expert
- Sara Edwards – Sustainable Garden Designer
- Nuala Reid – Project Manager
- Manja van de Worp – Structural Engineer
- Natalie Edwards – Beekeeper
- Lovely Jayne Javier – Junior Designer
By combining expertise in ecological landscape design, structural engineering, and novel material research, BeeBank is set to become a model for the future of infrastructure, proving that cities and rural landscapes can support both people and pollinators alike.
