Southport MP Patrick Hurley has brought in an experienced charities and heritage consultant to help strengthen the Botanic Gardens’ ability to attract major investment and secure its long-term future.
The work will sit alongside Patrick’s continued efforts to press the case for the future of the Botanic Gardens Aviary with Green Sefton and other relevant authorities.
Kate Rodenhurst will work with local stakeholders to identify potential funding opportunities and help strengthen the structures and foundations needed to make the strongest possible applications to major funding bodies.
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Having worked for many years across the charity and cultural heritage sectors, Kate brings extensive experience of securing and supporting investment in heritage projects. She was part of the research team evaluating Liverpool’s year as European Capital of Culture in 2008 and has worked on a successful National Lottery Heritage Fund bid for the Royal Albert Dock.
She has also worked across several funding streams including Arts Council England, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, local authority grant programmes and charitable trusts and foundations. She currently works as a freelance consultant and serves as a trustee of the Sefton Park Palm House Preservation Trust.
The move comes as efforts continue to identify the substantial investment needed across the Botanic Gardens.
In recent years, potential funding avenues have been explored to support improvements to assets including the museum, café, Victorian fernery and wooden bridges, alongside the longer-term maintenance of the lake, gardens and play areas. Hurley hopes that bringing additional specialist expertise into the process will help strengthen the Gardens’ ability to compete for larger external funding opportunities and build a more sustainable long-term footing for the site.
The announcement follows months of campaigning over the proposed closure of the Botanic Gardens Aviary. More than 15,000 people have signed a petition calling for the aviary to remain open, while Hurley has spoken at two public meetings at which residents had an opportunity to question the decision and discuss potential alternatives.
Sefton Council has maintained its decision to close the aviary, citing concerns over animal welfare and support for rehoming from several animal welfare organisations.
Hurley has stressed that he will continue pressing the case to Green Sefton and relevant authorities over the future of the aviary. At the same time, he believes the extraordinary strength of feeling generated by the campaign should be used to build greater momentum behind securing the future of the Botanic Gardens as a whole.
Patrick Hurley, MP for Southport and the Northern Parishes, said:
“My work to secure a future for the aviary will continue. In addition, the strength of feeling we have seen over the last few months also shows just how much the Botanic Gardens as a whole means to Southport and the wider region. I want to turn that passion into practical action that puts the Gardens in the strongest possible position for the future.
“That is why I have brought in Kate’s expertise. Her experience of heritage funding can help strengthen the structures around the Gardens, identify opportunities and empower those involved to compete for the major investment the site needs.
“Over the last couple of years, we have already shown across Southport what can be achieved when a strong case is made for capital investment. I want to bring that same determination to the Botanic Gardens and help put it in the strongest possible position to protect and improve our town’s Victorian heritage for generations to come.”
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