For peat's sake: RHS faces conservative backlash over Chelsea flower show

The Chelsea Flower Show featured celebrity and themed gardens, including a rose named for David Beckham, a bat-supporting nocturnal garden, and a Viking-themed allotment. Critics on the conservative wing raised concerns about financial strain and adherence to traditional approaches. The RHS accounts filed with the Charity Commission show a net loss of £8.1m for the year ending January 2025, double the prior year’s losses. The RHS attributed pressures to factors such as global events and reduced visits linked to roadworks, while also citing healthier unpublished accounts for the most recent year. The RHS reported income growth of 7%, a cash profit of £4.8m, and continued investment of £83m in charitable work, alongside record garden visits and membership sign-ups. Concerns also include the need for new charity sponsors after major backers ended support and a long-term sponsor launched a new initiative.

"The RHS's latest accounts filed with the Charity Commission reveal it recorded a net loss of 8.1m in the year ending January 2025 double its losses of the previous year raising concerns that financial pressures might grow like Japanese knotweed. The RHS said unpublished financial accounts for the last financial year were much healthier. With the well-documented impact of the M25/A3 behind us, last year the RHS grew its income by 7% and achieved a cash profit of 4.8m, whilst still investing 83m in our charitable work, and this April we enjoyed record garden visits and membership sign-ups, it said."

"There was King Charles and David Beckham as well as a nocturnal garden to support bats and a Viking-themed allotment full of edible plants in pots. The Royal Horticultural Society's Chelsea flower show, which ends on Saturday, was as lovely and celebrity-glittered as ever, most agreed. But dig a little deeper, say critics on the conservative wing of the RHS including one spectacularly outspoken former contributor and not everything is necessarily smelling of roses."

"But those concerned about the RHS's future have been pointing to the need for the Chelsea flower show to find new charity sponsors after a mystery philanthropic couple, who have spent more than 23m on the show, ended their support this year. Meanwhile, the Newt, the luxury hotel in Somerset which was previously a longstanding sponsor, launched i"

"There has been a cashflow problem and, depending on whom you speak to, the root cause might be global events, financial losses due to A3/M25 roadworks blocking visits to RHS Garden Wisley or, in the mind of some, wokery and a lack of adherence to the traditional ways of doing things."

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