Judges from Britain in Bloom visited º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ in the summer, which also included a tour of the University campus.
The scheme is one of the UK’s most historic gardening competitions, which aims to bring local communities together and improve their environment to be litter-free and abundant with trees, flowers and shrubs.
As a result of the judges’ visit, the town was announced as a recipient of the gold award at an awards ceremony which took place in London last month.
The University’s Gardens team received exceptional feedback from the judges, with comments including ‘the high standard of maintenance at the University grounds, including excellent herbaceous perennial beds designed by a member of the gardening staff, made the facility a pleasure to visit’ and ‘the University takes environmental responsibility seriously with students encouraged to become conservation volunteers in woodland management and wildlife areas’.
They also complimented the examples they had seen at both the University and Queens Park where sustainable planting for pollinators had been undertaken.
Kaz Setchell, the University’s Gardens Manager commented: “It was an honour to represent the University at the awards ceremony. Our beautiful campus is one we all should be truly proud of, I most certainly am.”
º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ in Bloom – which the University has been a partner of since its inception ten years ago - is supported by numerous organisations, community groups and residents across the town.
For more information about Britain in Bloom, visit the dedicated website.