A popular tourist and event destination in Birmingham has secured a £2 million grant to support a major restoration project.
The Botanical Gardens in Edgbaston has received the money to help it with the £19 million overhaul, plans for which were revealed in September.
The 15-acre site is home to heritage assets, including four Victorian glasshouses, which will be restored to reflect their original form and adapted to serve contemporary horticultural needs.
The project will provide a low-carbon, sympathetic reinterpretation of the existing gardens and structure and will deliver a long-term sustainable future for the attraction.
The work was described as "urgent and extensive" by chief executive Sara Blair-Manning.
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The grade II*-listed complex, which is home to more than 10,000 botanic species, opened in 1832 and welcomes around 220,000 visitors and 19,000 school children every year.
Chairwoman Sue Beardsmore said, "We are absolutely thrilled to receive this magnificent support for the Growing Our Green Heritage Project.
"This generous award is truly transformational and enables the gardens to progress this important and exciting project."
This new grant has been awarded by the Julia Rausing Trust as part of a wider award worth £16.7 million for cathedrals and botanical gardens to support ongoing repair works across the º£½ÇÊÓƵ.
Other beneficiaries include York Minister, University of Oxford and Manchester Cathedral.
The Julia Rausing Trust has been established in memory of the late British philanthropist Julia Rausing who died earlier this year.
She was the wife of Tetra Pak heir Hans Rausing and was only 63 at the time of her death after battling cancer.
The Julia Rausing Trust will donate £100 million to charities and organisations in its first year and annually thereafter, making it one of the largest charitable funds in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ.
Director Simon Fourmy said: "From the splendour of a medieval cathedral to the innovation of a Victorian, via a fascinating and inspiring array of museums dotted across the country, the º£½ÇÊÓƵ boasts exceptional heritage.
"Supporting heritage for the benefit of all was an important part of Julia Rausing's giving and so it is fitting to continue her legacy through these new heritage-themed grants."
