The Great Green Estate

The Great Green Estate is a community-led project transforming underused spaces across Poplar into greener, healthier, and more climate-resilient places.

By collaborating with residents and local partners, it outlines nature-friendly landscaping that supports biodiversity, improves wellbeing, and strengthens connections between people and their environment. Through nine pilot sites, the project showcases what’s possible in Poplar, paving the way for a greener future across the neighbourhood.

Greener, healthier, and stronger: transforming Poplar’s outdoor spaces

We own and manage 10,000 homes, all roughly within one square mile, across 12 estates. Each estate has its own character, qualities and challenges – and several of these challenges are climate-related. Air pollution is high in Poplar, trees and green spaces are in short supply, and many shared outdoor areas—like roadside verges and patches of scrubland—are underused and unloved.

The Great Green Estate is designed to change that. By working with local people, the project looks at how these spaces can be transformed to make Poplar greener, healthier, and more resilient to climate change. The focus is on nature-friendly landscaping that not only supports wildlife but also improves people’s wellbeing and helps bring the community together.

The project recommends climate-friendly improvements for nine pilot sites, showing what’s possible on estate land across Poplar. It’s not just about planting trees and flowers—it’s about long-term care, shared responsibility, and making sure everyone can enjoy and benefit from greener spaces.

You can explore the full project in the document below.

The Great Green Estate

 

Acknowledgements

The Great Green Estate is Poplar Green Futures project, led by Poplar HARCA. It’s part of the Mayor of London’s Future Neighbourhoods 2030 initiative and has been funded through the Mayor of London’s Green and Resilient Spaces Fund (2023).

With thanks to the GLA Environment team for their support for both The Great Green Estate and Poplar Green Futures (Future Neighbourhoods 2030) initiatives, and to members of The Great Green Estate Resident Steering Group whose ideas, knowledge and experiences have been crucial in shaping this project.

All appendices to the main document can be viewed below.

Appendices