RHS raises £18m from the lease of Lawrence Hall and Conference Centre

The Royal Horticultural Society has raised £18m from the lease of its Lawrence Hall and Conference Centre and plans to set up a fundraising campaign to raise another £9m over the next five years.

The charity granted Westminster School a 999-year lease of Lawrence Hall and Conference Centre. The centre will continue to be used to hold the RHS’s London Flower Shows.

The charity, which was founded in 1804, aims to use the money raised for educational purposes, scientific research and to add new centres to urban and rural areas across the region.

The charity will also use the £27m to make changes to existing sites the RHS Garden Hyde Hall in Essex and the RHS Garden Wisley in Surrey.

The RHS’s general manager, Sue Biggs, said that the charity’s plans will "help transform communities, add much needed scientific knowledge and safeguard horticulture for the benefit of future generations and the environment."