Newbury In Bloom

NEWBURY IN BLOOM 2024 WINNERS ANNOUNCED

The Newbury in Bloom Presentation evening took place at the Corn Exchange, Newbury on 18 September 2024. The Mayor of Newbury, Cllr Andy Moore, together with the sponsors, presented the awards to the very deserving winners. There were a total of 38 entries received for the eight categories this year.

All entrants were invited to attend on the evening and the winners of each category were announced on the stage. The winners were presented with a beautiful spade, burn etched by local pyrography artist Naomi Lunn, together with a certificate and a £100 prize from the sponsors for each category.

The evening also celebrated the Green Flag status achieved for Victoria Park and City Recreation ground earlier in the year, recognised by the Green Flag Award Scheme as two of the very best parks. The prestigious Green Flag Award is the recognised mark of a quality park or green space and demonstrates to the public that the Park boasts the highest possible environmental standards, is well maintained and has excellent visitor facilities.

As part of the presentation evening, a special award was given for the ‘Dedication to Horticulture within their Community’ to Mr. Doug Marsh of Lower Raymond Almshouses.

James Heasman, Newbury Town Council’s Parks & Open Spaces Supervisor and organiser of the event, said on the night, “I have seen some amazing entries over the years and some truly dedicated people but only one entry has been there year after year with Doug being the driving force each time.                             

There has been such progression over the years and the Lower Raymond Almshouses have won their category a number of times.  Doug has let us know that he will be hanging up his trowel this year and handing over the reigns to others within the community. We wanted to dedicate this special award to recognise his achievement. Thank you, Doug, for all of your dedication over the years.”

Cllr Gary Norman, Leader of the Council, said, “I am sure we can all agree that Newbury looks spectacular throughout the year and it’s great to see so many people putting in that extra effort and showing what can be done to enhance our town for everyone to enjoy”.

Cllr Norman added, “Together with our recent ‘Green Flag’ awards for both Victoria Park and City Recreation Ground we can all be proud to live and work in Newbury. I would like to congratulate everyone who took part in the Newbury in Bloom campaign and thank Tudor Environmental, who kindly donated the spades and our contractors, John O’Conner who have sponsored this presentation evening. 

We are very grateful to all of our sponsors who donated prizes for each category and the Corn Exchange, Newbury for their invaluable support in making the awards such a success”.

The winners for each category are:

Schools and Colleges – sponsored by Rivar Sand and Gravel Ltd

Winner – Newbury College

Allotments – sponsored by Yew Tree Garden Centre

Winner – James Berry at West Mills Allotments

Community Projects – sponsored by Rivar Sand and Gravel Ltd

Winner – The Globe Garden, Newbury Lock   

Businesses – sponsored by Sundog Hire

Winner – Bill’s Restaurant, Newbury

Places of Worship – sponsored by Sundog Hire

Winner – St Nicolas Newbury

Neighbourhood – sponsored by Greentips Tree Surgery

Winner – Lower Raymond Almshouses

Miniature Garden – sponsored by Greentips Tree Surgery

Winner – Falkland School Miniature Garden on Wash Common Allotment

Click on the links below to see a short film of the Community Projects that are currently taking place together with Newbury Town Council: 

NHS Commemorative Garden at Old Hospital Green

Lockdown Woods Project

City Recreation Ground Orchard & Wildflower Meadow

Secret Garden Project, Lock Island

One Tree Park Allotments