In Bloom Campaign

Tetbury was again a national Finalist in the
RHS Britain in Bloom Campaign in 2011

The RHS Judges were in Tetbury
on Wednesday 10th of August
for a two-hour formal judging tour

Judging was followed by a
Community Event at the Market Hall

Tetbury competed against five other small towns - the very best in the UK.
Starting at 8.30am the judges, Rae Beckwith & Sharon Thomas, were welcomed to Tetbury at the Market Hall and then taken on a tour of the town which included:

· The glorious hanging baskets and the floral displays in Long Street

· The flowerbeds along London Road: at the roundabout, Braybrooke Close, Tesco’s and the Priory Industrial Estate

· The front gardens of Cookspool

· The mural, designed and painted by children of St Mary’s School, screening the entrance to the vacant Matbro site – thank you to Builders Ede for supplying the boards and for giving us permission to display them

· The flowerbeds at Old Coombe House, the fire station and the Knapp

· The new wildflower planting along the verges of Cutwell

· The trees on West Street and Brewery Lane car parks, the award winning flowerbeds outside the public conveniences

· The beautiful Saint Mary’s churchyard project

· The stunning floral window displays in many of the shop premises

· Chipping Steps.

Finally, we returned to the Market Hall to meet our supporters and sponsors, to view an exhibition of photographs and to partake of refreshments, which were served by the Women’s Institute. As ever, the people of Tetbury did us proud, and the Judges were greeted by a packed Market Hall full of enthusiasm and support for Tetbury in Bloom.

Showing the Judges how much the community of Tetbury supports the campaign really does make a huge difference to how well we fare. We were competing against five of the very best small towns in the UK and our aim was to get that elusive Gold award that we so narrowly missed out on in 2009. The RHS Judging assesses how well the entrant is doing in three main areas: Horticultural Achievement, Community Involvement and Environmental Responsibility. Guidance is provided in the Finalists Manual issued to all entrants.

Unfortunately, we “only” achieved a second Silver-Gilt Award, though the Judges did say (again) that we were very close to winning Gold. Judges comments from the RHS here.

Whatever the result, it is always as pleasure to show the town looking its best and what we can achieve when we work together to make our town a better place to live, work and visit.

Thank you to all who came along on Judging Day, and who helped in the days and weeks beforehand to make Tetbury shine.

Tetbury was a first-time Finalist in the national Britain in Bloom Campaign in 2009 and were presented with a Silver Gilt award,
narrowly missing out on Gold

Some of the judges comments included:

“A fantastic effort by all.
One to watch for the future and has the potential to progress through to the highest level of achievement in Britain in Bloom.
Well done!”

Horticultural Achievement:
(Sustainable planting )
“probably the best examples the judges have ever seen”

“inspirational”

Environmental Responsibility:
“spectacularly clean”

“extremely impressive level of recycling”

wildflower panels- “exceptional – simple yet very effective”

Community Participation:
“representation from all ages
and sectors of the community was unequalled”

“portfolio and tour exceptionally well thought out and executed”

“impressive support … an example others should follow”

Tetbury were also nominated for two Judges’ Discretionary Awards—the Permanent Landscaping Award (for the excellent sustainable planting) and the Community Award (for the way all ages and sections of the community came together

An extremely good result for a first-time finalist.

In 2010 Tetbury entered the regional
Heart of England in Bloom competition

and achieved

· A fifth consecutive GOLD award

· A third consecutive Category Winner award for Best Small Town

· The judges’ discretionary award for ‘Community Achievement’

and was also judged the

OVERALL WINNER

in the Heart of England region

out of 47 entries

AND

Tetbury was again nominated for the

national Finals of Britain in Bloom in 2011!!

Heart of England Judges’ Comments 2010

The judges (senior judge Les Goodman and David Wassell MBE) and Boyd Douglas-Davies of Webbs Garden Centres Ltd (representing the main sponsor) were particularly impressed by:

· The rousing welcome from Derek Jackson, the Town Crier, the Tetbury in Bloom team and town dignitaries

· The colourful roadside planting and, in particular, the stunning Star Roundabout

· The floral displays throughout the town centre and in the shop windows

· The permanent planting in Saint Mary’s Churchyard

· The beautiful mural and the strong working relationship we have with the pupils and teachers of Saint Mary’s Primary School and other youth groups

· The levels of grass maintenance – well done and thank you to the Town Council grounds maintenance staff

· The displays of hanging baskets on the Market Hall, Snooty Fox, Jesse Smiths and the Council Offices

· The private gardens of Cookspool and the enthusiasm of its residents

· The impressive levels of recycling – keep it up!

· The obvious pride Tetbury has in its local heritage

· The newly created paved area at the entrance to the Market Hall and the majestic planters, installed and paid for by the Feoffees

· The overall levels of cleanliness – thanks to the band of people who helped us sweep and weed the whole judging route: Derek Bloxham , Di Bryan, Peter Fisher, Barry and Christine Gibbs, Roz Goodwin and her Mum, Terry and Elvia Guyler, Jean Henderson, Pat Horton, Louise Marriage, Pete and Theo Martin, Basil Mason-Smith, Lisa, Heidi and Wil Mustoe, Ron Poppleton, Alistair Taylor, David Thompson, Ken White and members of the First and Second Tetbury Guides, The Tetbury Cubs and Scouts

· And, of course, the impressive levels of community involvement, so clearly evidenced at the exhibition afterwards, which the judges said were “outstanding” and couldn’t be bettered.

About the campaign:

Britain in Bloom is one of the largest, most prestigious, campaigns of its kind in Europe; run by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), it has the aim of creating a more beautiful nation. To quote Rodger Burnett, Chairman of the judges, "being an RHS Britain in Bloom Finalist identifies you as one of the 'cared for communities' and presents a wonderful opportunity for us all to promote your environment, past projects and plans for the coming year".

To learn much more about the campaign and the things the judges look for and the marking criteria you can read the Britain in Bloom Finalists Manual on the RHS website.

It’s much more than just flowers:

It is so much more than just a gardening competition. Britain in Bloom is not all about floral displays and making the town look good for judging day alone; it is about achieving lasting improvements, throughout the year, thus creating a better place to live, work and visit. This fits very well with the philosophy of the Tetbury in Bloom team who do what they do because they care about Tetbury, and we are delighted at being given the opportunity to showcase our town.

We need your support:

We will need the continued support of the community, the many societies and the Town Council if we are to perform well in all aspects of the Britain in Bloom competition.

Whilst a large part of the campaign is about the imaginative seasonal planting of flowers, shrubs and trees, great emphasis is also placed on appropriate landscaping, conservation projects, recycling and cleanliness initiatives.

Thank you to all who joined in ...

......and helped us to make Tetbury look its best ever!! If you would like to become involved long term or just fancy lending us a hand during one of our many work parties, you will be more than welcome!!

Working parties:

As might be expected, even though the team work throughout the year, to make things look as good as possible there is always lots to do in the “Big Push” in the run-up to judging.

During the rest of the year things are a bit calmer but Tetbury in Bloom are always working hard to make sure the town continues to look good. We have regular work parties, usually mornings or afternoons two days per week, with occasional evening work parties as needed. If you would like to be involved, or just kept informed so that you can turn up when you can, you can contact Sue Hirst on 01666 504213 or e-mail her on sue@tetburyinbloom.org.ukfor further information. Keep an eye on the “Latest News” page for announcements.

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Website designed and constructed by
Sue Hirst & Kevin Farnham

In Bloom Campaign

Some of the things the Judges have been impressed by: following:

The begonia hanging baskets on the Market Hall and the Snooty Fox Hotel

The involvement of young people

The floral displays outside

The Close Hotel, Long Street

The “exciting blend of permanent planting of shrubs, perennials & trees “at the SIAC roundabout

The Anniversary Gardens

The wildlife pond at St Mary’s Primary School

The “sympathetic landscaping “ outside the West Street toilets which has won ‘The Best Dressed Toilet’ award for 2 years running