Press Release

South & South East in Bloom Awards 2017

The Town Council is delighted to be awarded Silver-Gilt in the Town Centre category recently announced at the prestigious regional awards ceremony.

There to collect the award on behalf of the Town was Cllr David Hawkins, former Mayor and current Vice-Chairman of the Amenities Committee, together with Town Clerk, Graham Flexman.

This is the first time New Milton has entered the competition, aiming high with its first attempt in one of the Main Awards categories.

Cllr Hawkins described it as “A great result in our first In Bloom contest – and congratulations to all staff on a magnificent achievement.”

Graham Flexman said it was “a fantastic result for a new entrant, with only Farnham (Surrey County Winner) & Rustington (West Sussex County Winner) achieving Gold ahead of us in this hotly-contested category”.

Judges were most impressed “with the very clean and well-looked after town”.

They added: “This was a very good first time entry from New Milton, with consistently good floral displays. The War Memorial area and Recreation Ground layout and maintenance were very good, roadside verges and maintenance in key areas was also very good”.

Judges praised the Town’s wildflower areas stating “Direct sown annual flower displays are effective and appropriate to the areas.” In summary, judges said: “We much appreciated the warm welcome and we felt that the commitment of everyone we met will take the entry forward in future years”.

Chairman of the Amenities Committee Cllr Geoff Blunden described the award as “a ringing endorsement for all the hard work and effort put in by our staff, especially the grounds maintenance team throughout the year”.

 

22 September, 2017

Contact Graham Flexman, Town Clerk, NMTC.  clerk@newmiltontowncouncil.gov.uk

Photo BBC Radio Surrey presenter Joe Talbot presents award to New Milton Town Council