Funding News: Sweet City Portsmouth – Sugar & Spice, All Things Nice!

We’re thrilled to share some delicious news — Sustainable Conservation Trust has secured funding for Sugar & Spice Portsmouth: Sugar & Spice, All Things Nice!, a joyful, community-led project turning our city into an edible work of art from the National Lottery Community Fund!

Starting this winter, we’ll be inviting schools, universities, artists, and community groups across Portsmouth to come together and reimagine our city — in gingerbread form. Using biscuits, icing, and sustainable materials, participants will design and build fantastical versions of Portsmouth’s landmarks, public spaces, and neighbourhoods — from candy-clad forts and icing-draped spinnakers to rewilded sweet gardens and biscuit boulevards.

More than just a creative challenge, Sugar & Spice Portsmouth is about exploring what makes a great city — and how imagination, collaboration, and sustainability can help us shape a greener, more inclusive future. Rooted in Portsmouth’s own rich character as Britain’s gateway to the world, the project celebrates a city where tea first arrived in England, where sugar and spice were once traded along its bustling docks, and where Spice Island still stands as a reminder of Portsmouth’s maritime and cultural heritage.

Workshops with schools and community groups will begin this winter (December 2025–January 2026), leading up to a public exhibition planned for Easter 2026.

Keep an eye on our website and social media channels for further announcements, including how to get involved or become a partner in bringing this sweet vision to life.

For partnership enquiries, more information, or simply take part please contact: studio@sustainableconservationtrust.com

The project was inspired by The Gingerbread City®, an educational initiative by the Museum of Architecture that celebrates design and creativity through gingerbread models. However, Sugar & Spice Portsmouth is not affiliated with or endorsed by The Gingerbread City® or the Museum of Architecture.

“The image above shows the gingerbread model of Spitbank Fort created by Deniz Beck Partners

for The Gingerbread City exhibition in London 2024, which inspired our community project."