Every year the Royal Horticultural Society’s Britain in Bloom awards celebrate areas around the country that have been transformed by the power of plants. From busy cities to tiny villages, local volunteers are recognised in lots of different categories for bringing people together through gardening and creating flourishing beds of flora.
While lots of participating communities get praise, there’s always one overall winner. And scooping the top botanical prize this year was Newcastle-under-Lyme. With the help of 4,000 hours of volunteer work, the town planted flowers along the theme of its 850th anniversary celebrations and took on a sustainable approach by planting long-lasting herbs and perennial plants on town centre roundabouts.
During their national inspection in the summer, judges of Britain in Bloom looked out for significant community involvement, the restoration of habitats, evidence of good ecological practices, year-round activity by volunteers, a wide-range of plant species and work to support wildlife.
Newcastle also won in the ‘small city’ category, beating the likes of Royal Tunbridge Wells in Kent, Derry in Northern Ireland and the Borough of Oadby and Wigston in Leicestershire. Its gorgeous floral displays also earned it a regional prize at the Heart of England in Bloom awards earlier this month.
Simon Tagg, leader of Newcastle Borough Council, said: ‘It is impossible to win this prizes unless the whole community pulls together: schools, businesses, community groups and volunteers have worked together to make this possible and I am so proud of this shared achievement.’
Bloomin’ lovely
Here at Time Out we know that flowers are food for the soul and there’s nothing like a burst of natural colour to brighten your day. That’s why we created our guides to the best places to see the likes of cherry blossom, wisteria, lavender, bluebelles or wildflowers. They may be hiding away for the winter now, but it’s never a bad idea to plan ahead!
Did you see that this UK city could become the first to give people the ‘right to grow’ on disused land?
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