The London College of Garden Design has today announced plans to open a new partner college in Melbourne. The new London College of Garden Design Melbourne will open its doors in March 2020 with a unique new two-year Garden Design Diploma which will be led by a new Director, leading Australian designer Brent Reid, supported by practicing design, horticulture and technical professionals.

UK Director Andrew Fisher Tomlin said “We have explored a number of opportunities to take our unique training to a wider audience over the past two years. Australia quickly became our first priority and Melbourne, with its rich heritage of plants and gardens, the obvious location.”

The new Garden Design Diploma will be written specifically for Australian skills training and fulfils an ambition by the College to provide a more intensive and wide-ranging experience for students over a longer 2-year period. Director Brent Reid said “This new, longer course will allow us to focus on specialist subjects in more depth especially in planting design and those areas that reflect Australia’s love for outdoor living. The College’s London colleagues will bring their unique experience to the course, contributing to training and the overall design experience.”

In the UK the London College of Garden Design is known for it’s fresh approach to garden design training that focuses on core skills building with a layered approach across the whole course rather than individual modules that can become disconnected.

Brent Reid added “The approach we take is unique to LCGD and a new form of vocational garden design training not previously seen in Australia. This approach is reflected in the success of the College’s graduates in setting up their own businesses, finding positions with existing design offices and the professional awards that LCGD graduates have won over the past 10 years.”

Over the past 10 years LCGD graduates have picked up the majority of student awards from the Society of Garden Designers, the UK’s professional body for garden design, and many mainstream awards including the Royal Horticultural Society’s Young Designer of the Year in 2018.

The College’s first Garden Design Diploma program will start in March 2020 and run for 4 semesters across two years with a new course commencing each year. The College’s new location will be revealed shortly.

The new college will have a stand at the Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show and both Brent Reid and Andrew Fisher Tomlin will be available to meet at the show.

About the London College of Garden Design Melbourne
Details of the Garden Design Diploma can be found by downloading the prospectus from our website www.lcgd.com.au.