New access routes and gardens will transform Kensington Palace (above)
Kensington Palace will be transformed into a "palace for the people" with public gardens, a "central hub" inside the building and free admission for children in a £12 million Heritage Lottery Fund-backed project.
A series of permanent exhibitions on the royals who have populated the Palace, including George II, Queen Victoria and Diana, Princess of Wales, will be built into the new-look design under plans aimed at elevating the inclusivity of the site in time for the Olympics and Queen's Jubilee in 2012. Education programmes and new access routes will also be created.
Permanent displays will tell the story of the Royals who have lived at the Palace
Michael Day, Chief Executive of Historic Royal Palaces, claimed work to raise the remaining £4 million required was "well underway".
"British history flows through Kensington Palace like an ever-rolling stream," added a poetic Wesley Kerr, Chair of London HLF.
"For 320 years this fabulous palace and the marvellously serene landscape surrounding it have been shaped and moulded by many of the great figures of our common past.
Wesley Kerr compared the history of the Palace to "an ever-rolling stream"
"Now new generations will be able to enjoy and learn from the Palace through greatly enhanced access and educational programmes, the reuniting of the Palace with the magnificent vistas from and to central London, and the retelling of so many great stories."
The late 17th century rule of original buyers William and Mary, formative romances of the young Victoria I and architecture of the 17th and 18th centuries – luminaries such as Sir Christopher Wren, Nicholas Hawksmoor, Sir John Vanbrugh, John Nash, Colin Campbell and William Kent have shaped the Grade I-listed building – will form focal points for learning facilities.
Major works will begin next June.
