Tower of London announces plans for £70m transformation

The Tower of London could receive a £70 million transformation as it unveils plans for new learning and community spaces at the historic site.

The Historic Royal Palaces charity, which manages six of the UK’s royal palaces, hopes to raise £70 million to modernise the fortress’ existing facilities. The charity said it has already collected £20 million in donations for the makeover.

This will include two new learning centres, spaces for community use, an “Archive Study Centre” and a green classroom in the moat.

The charity expects that learning capacity will be expanded by 250 per cent and will increase school visits from 125,000 to 200,000 annually.

The plans represent one of the largest single investments in the Tower since the 13th century. Donors and partners such as The Julia Rausing Trust, Garfield Weston Foundation, and the National Lottery Heritage Fund have all supported the Historic Royal Palaces’ plans.

One of the buildings, the Julia Rausing Learning Centre, will take its name from one of its supporters. It will see the historic Waterloo Block - which houses the Crown Jewels - revamped to create a three-floor site dedicated to education.

Another block, named the Archive Study Centre, will facilitate the opening of the Tower’s architectural archives to the public for the first time.

The most fascinating part of the Tower’s proposed project is the green classroom on the moat. Aside from explaining that the classroom will combine nature and heritage, the exact plans for the learning space remain shrouded in mystery.

A projection of the Julia Rausing Learning Centre Classroom (Historic Royal Palaces and Darc Studio)

A projection of one of the proposed learning spaces (Historic Royal Palaces and Jamie Fobert Architects)

Jamie Fobert Architects and landscape architects Grant Associates will carry out the transformation, paying special attention to the constraints of renovating a UNESCO world heritage site. The work isn’t expected to disturb visitors to the Tower of London when it commences late next year.

John Barnes, Chief Executive of Historic Royal Palaces, said: “The Tower of London should be a place of learning, discovery and connection for everyone, and Tomorrow’s Tower is our long-term commitment to making that happen.

“This investment in schools and learning is an important first step, within a wider programme that also addresses sustainability, visitor experience, conservation and access.

“Thanks to the generosity of our funders, we are opening the Tower up more widely, so future generations can understand why its stories still matter.”