Faith

Where the journey begins, between Lower Avenue and Bath Place. A winding route up the bank beside the station, a gateway onto the viaduct, and a first stretch of garden with somewhere to play, somewhere to eat and quieter corners among the trees.

02 History →

Sketch plan of the Faith Garden from above. A winding path climbs through planting beside the station, then the first stretch of the viaduct holds a terrace, an old railway carriage and play along the edges.

Arrival and Faith Garden sketch (Greenwood-Hill): the first ideas for the garden on paper, drawn with our landscape architects. Hover over or tap a number to see what it is.

1: A winding path up to the viaduct at an accessible gradient
2: A gateway to mark the entrance
3: A seating nook tucked along the route
4: A seating terrace with festoon lights and feature paving
5: An old railway carriage reborn as a café and bar
6: Feature seating among the planting
7: Play on the way, with little adventures along the route
8: Climbers scrambling up the boundary screen
9: Slides and play on the sloping edges

Up the bank

The journey begins on the grass bank beside the station, a slope most people pass without a second look. We want to turn it into a gently winding path up to the viaduct, an accessible route for everyone, with places to pause and rest on the way up. For anyone in a hurry, a run of steps is woven into the landscape alongside.

The change in level is an invitation to play as well as a climb: slides, climbing structures and nets are woven into the landform, encouraging exploration on the way up. At the top, a distinctive gateway marks the arrival onto the viaduct. The same gateway language repeats at every entrance and exit along the route, all the way to the canal, giving the whole High Line one clear identity and a sense of connection from end to end.

On the viaduct

The forms of the historic railway shape the character of the first stretch of the viaduct. Set among the tracks, a restored railway carriage becomes a café or bar, with outdoor seating, feature paving and lighting around it: a welcoming destination along the route, and a reason to come up in its own right.

The winding path continues through this space, and that gives the planting room to vary in depth and height. Along the railway edge it grows taller, with climbers on the boundary screen to soften the view and give a degree of separation from the live line. As the path curves away, more intimate spaces open up among groups of trees: quieter corners, somewhere to sit, pause and reflect.

Cross-section through the Faith Garden. On the left, people walk and sit under bunting among trees on the viaduct deck, a corridor for wildlife and an active travel route. On the right, a train passing on the live railway viaduct alongside. — Section through the Faith Garden (Greenwood-Hill), with the live railway viaduct running alongside on the right.

The section gives a first sense of scale: the relationship between the viaduct, the railway and the planting as it matures. It also carries the themes that run the whole length of the High Line. Active travel. Spaces for community. And, consistently the whole way through, a rich green corridor for wildlife, running high above Leamington.