This was the second year that Old Town Residents Association gardeners took part in the It's Your Neighbourhood competition, and our first year as South Swindon Parish taking part in the main competition of the RHS's Britain in Bloom scheme. The South West Britain in Bloom website sums up the impact of Bloom like this:
'South West in Bloom is one of eighteen regional/national competitions that make up Britain in Bloom, the biggest horticultural campaign in Europe. The aim of the communities that take part each year is to improve and regenerate our local environments, through the imaginative planting of trees, shrubs, flowers and landscaping, conservation and recycling projects, and to sweep away the eyesores that blight our streets, such as litter, graffiti and vandalism'.
The IYN scheme allows small community gardening groups to gain recognition for what they do, and receive advice from experts, and the main competition covers a larger area, so in the South Swindon Parish, we took judges on a tour of some of the main sites we wanted them to consider. Here's a post about judging in 2018 when we received a level 3, 'establishing'. Judging took place this year on 11 July and there's a post on it here. It was a long time until 11 October when we received this years results of both competitions in Newquay.
It's a long drive down to Newquay, we arrived just as it was going dark, but we were determined to have a look at the beach. There were people still in the water despite the fact it was almost dark. In the distance, although we didn't know it at the time, the hotel on top of the hill is The Atlantic Hotel where we were to receive our awards the next day.
This is the Great Western Beach by the way, named after the railway, and one of nine beaches in Newquay. Our hotel, the Best Western was just above the beach.
Here are people in the sea.
The next morning, I walked along to Tolcarne Beach before breakfast, it was a bit of a dull morning, but walking down to the sea is wonderful.
On the sea front there's a mermaid holding something. I can't find out anything about this, although she's holding a fish in front of Tolcarne Beach reception.
After breakfast we headed off to The Atlantic Hotel for the awards.
Here are the Parish Councillors who attended, seen below in the hall waiting to find out the results
We had thought that there might be talks between awards as there had been at the Chippenham Seminar this spring, but what happened was the It's Your Neighbourhood awards were handed out in the morning by patrons of South west in Bloom, Lord and Lady Fellowes who took it in turns to hand out awards.
Photographs were displayed with each group, many of which were very inspiring, but there was a lot of clapping to do.
Here's Lady Fellowes handing out awards
and here they both are together
When our IYN results were read out, we had one 3 awards for the 3 gardens visited by the judges, and had increased from a level 3 'establishing', to level 4 'thriving', I was so choked I could hardly walk up for the awards. Here are Neil Hopkins and myself on the left of the picture with Lord Fellowes in the middle, then another judge who looked at Penhill Haven, and Richard Beale who judged us last year and has been very helpful.
After a great buffet lunch, we received a silver pennant for the parish which was wonderful for our first time entering. The Parish had entered the Town and City Pennant award for the South West Region and were pleased and elated to win the Silver award and certificate. After receiving this award, we sat back to watch and clap as groups were awarded cups, when suddenly a photo of the bandstand in the Town Gardens appeared on the screen, and it transpired the Town Gardens had also won the City of Bath trophy for landscaping, seen here below with Chris Watts, Chair of the South Swindon Parish Council
We received very useful feedback in written form from the judges and also there was a chance to talk to them after the event.
The next morning, before leaving Newquay, I walked as far as Lusty Glaze Beach, must be fabulous in sunshine.
The following Tuesday, at our Parish meeting, the Chair introduced the two head gardeners, Mr Richard Pinchon and Mr Aaron Hedges whose hard work and commitment throughout some quite difficult times in the last three years had been amazing, copies of the certificates were then presented to the Head Gardeners, seen below.
The Chair said that the judges had mentioned that Britain in Bloom is about regeneration and at the ceremony said that they were impressed by Old Town Gardens, GWR Park and the South side of Shaftesbury Lake and commented on the WW1 memorial.
Above you can just see Rob Core, Parish Clerk and Theresa Gordon, Administrative Assistant, but the main two are Chris and Aaron with the cup and certificates. There was a great write up in the Adver
A PS, we stopped at Strawberry Fields on the way there and back and were very impressed with the amazing things on sale there.
. Well worth stopping there if in the area of Lifton.
'South West in Bloom is one of eighteen regional/national competitions that make up Britain in Bloom, the biggest horticultural campaign in Europe. The aim of the communities that take part each year is to improve and regenerate our local environments, through the imaginative planting of trees, shrubs, flowers and landscaping, conservation and recycling projects, and to sweep away the eyesores that blight our streets, such as litter, graffiti and vandalism'.
The IYN scheme allows small community gardening groups to gain recognition for what they do, and receive advice from experts, and the main competition covers a larger area, so in the South Swindon Parish, we took judges on a tour of some of the main sites we wanted them to consider. Here's a post about judging in 2018 when we received a level 3, 'establishing'. Judging took place this year on 11 July and there's a post on it here. It was a long time until 11 October when we received this years results of both competitions in Newquay.
This is the Great Western Beach by the way, named after the railway, and one of nine beaches in Newquay. Our hotel, the Best Western was just above the beach.
A PS, we stopped at Strawberry Fields on the way there and back and were very impressed with the amazing things on sale there.
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