Warwick car park scoops national award - The Leamington Observer

Warwick car park scoops national award

Leamington Editorial 2nd Jun, 2016 Updated: 28th Oct, 2016   0

LOOKING for somewhere to park your car? It seems the best place is in Warwick – and that’s official!

The multi-storey car park at National Grid’s headquarters scooped the Best New Car Park award at this year’s British Parking Awards in London.

The jury was impressed by the building’s aesthetics and quality, the column-free parking, as well as the living wall on the outside of the car park.

Containing 25 species of plants that bloom all year round, the wall not only provides a constantly-changing view for staff and visitors, but also improves the surrounding atmosphere by absorbing carbon dioxide and filtering out pollutants from rain water.




The so-called ‘wonder wall’ features 97,000 individual plants covering 1,042 square meters – making it the largest living wall in Europe.

The plants were specifically chosen to grow in a woven pattern which also helps encourage wildlife by providing a nesting site for birds to a source of nectar from wild strawberries for National Grid’s on-site colony of bees.


But cleverly, wasps are being kept away by the inclusion of the plant Mentha – a variety of mint, which acts a deterrent.

The car park itself, which was designed and build by construction firm Goldbeck, has 379 parking spaces across three levels, 79 external parking spaces and 12 spaces for electric vehicles. At night, the entire building is lit by durable, low energy LED lighting.

Goldbeck was awarded the contract in June 2014, construction started in September 2014, and the project was completed in February 2015.

Christian Büscher, managing director at Goldbeck International, said he was proud the project had been recognised.

He added: “This confirms our philosophy that a good car park is more than just a space to park your vehicle.

“It is a well thought out, user-friendly system allowing for a comfortable operation as well as economical management.”

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