[C]ommunity gardening groups across Cumbria are celebrating this morning after scooping a haul of medals in the Royal Horticultural Society’s (RHS) Britain in Bloom UK Finals. The winners were announced last night at an awards ceremony in Llandudno, North Wales.
Penrith, Dalston, Kendal and Silloth-on-Solway were chosen to fly the flag for the region following success in the Cumbria in Bloom competition the previous year.
Penrith won the Business Improvement District (BID) category and was awarded a Gold medal for the exceptionally high standard of their entry. A BID is an area in which the local businesses have voted to invest together to improve their environment and the group battled against Blackburn Town Centre, London Bridge, Mansfield and Norwich in the category. Penrith impressed the judges with the high standard of its floral schemes, the teamwork shown by the businesses and community volunteers, and sense of civic pride it fostered.
Dalston was also awarded a Gold medal in the Large Village category and the judges were “delighted” at the progress made over the past year, with some stunning new gardens including a wildflower area at the Jubilee Garden.
Cumbrian volunteers Joan Robinson and Liz Auld also received Community Champion awards in recognition of their contributions to their Bloom groups’ success.
Joan Robinson, heads up a team of community volunteers in Penrith and has been instrumental in the group’s success, planting up many areas of the town including the railway station.
Dalston in Bloom coordinator, Liz Auld, has been an active member of the group for 21 years and also serves as coordinator of Cumbria in Bloom. Over her tenure, she has grown both into “a stronger position than ever before”.
The full results for the finalists representing Cumbria are:
| Entry | Category | Award |
| Penrith | Business Improvement District | Category Winner and Gold Community Champion award: Joan Robinson |
| Dalston | Large Village | Gold Community Champion award: Liz Auld |
| Kendal | Large Town | Silver Gilt |
| Silloth-on-Solway | Coastal (up to 12k) | Silver Gilt |
The four joined Britain in Bloom groups from across the UK at the RHS Britain in Bloom awards ceremony, hosted by TV presenter and renowned garden designer James Alexander-Sinclair.
RHS judges visited the 78 finalists over the summer to assess each group against three key criteria: community participation, environmental responsibility and horticultural achievement.
Depending on the standard reached, a Gold, Silver Gilt, Silver or Bronze medal is awarded, with a winner in each category and discretionary awards for achieving excellence in particular fields.
Between them, this year’s Britain in Bloom finalists planted over a million trees, bulbs and other plants, transforming villages, towns and cities into green havens that lift people’s spirits and improve their wellbeing.
Roger Burnett, Chair of the RHS Britain in Bloom judges, said: “It’s a huge honour to witness how Britain in Bloom brings people together and the lengths that groups go to to make their communities clean, green and beautiful. We saw an incredible diversity of different planting schemes, including wildflower meadows for wildlife, community food growing and plants chosen to cope with our changing climate.
“This year, the standard was as high as ever but what really stood out was the creativity and ingenuity that groups showed in tackling the specific challenges of their particular areas, whether that be lack of funding, local social issues or tricky site conditions.”
Britain in Bloom is now in its 53rd year and, for the first time, a new BBC Two series following the quintessentially British competition is set to air in spring 2018.
