Britain in Bloom. Beverley is Blooming Lovely

Beverley is proud to represent Yorkshire in the Large Town category of RHS Britain in Bloom - one of the nine finalists in the UK. The Beverley Town Council Bloom Group is busy preparing the town for the judges’ visit.

So many people have joined in to make Beverley look especially ‘blooming’ lovely for this year’s competition. New planting schemes have been implemented in Railway Square, at the Railway Station and along North Bar thanks to sponsorship
from the former Beverley Catholic Club of £5,000 and the Community Rail Partnership of £3,750; Destination Beverley has donated £1,500 to the cause, recognising the increased tourism offer RHS Britain in Bloom attracts to the town; Beverley Town Council increased their budget to £3,000 this year along with increased officer time, resources and watering services and Mr. and Mrs. Denham of Plant Raisers of Howden have again kindly sponsored the cost of many of the plants, as they have done for the past few years. All of this and more has helped make a difference to and improve the horticultural displays in our beautiful town.

Thanks must go to East Riding of Yorkshire Council for their grounds, environmental and street scene works within the town which have given Coronation, Hengate Memorial and Lord Roberts Road Gardens a much needed spruce up and to John and Beatrice Los of Woodmansey who are spearheading a new project with the Town Council Bloom Group to grow more
sustainable plants locally.

The Bloom Group has worked tirelessly this year to make the floral offer bright, beautiful and different. There is a record number of over 100 hanging baskets hung around the town along with around 300 planters which together hold over
8,000 plants. Additionally, there are interesting themed flower beds; historical interpretation boards; ‘there but not there silhouettes’; SSAFA Flower Festival WW1 centenary murals and the inaugural Beverley Birdwatch wildlife scheme.
Most of the planters used are environmentally friendly in that they are made of recycled plastic and contain water reservoirs to reduce evaporation and the need for daily watering.

The Town Council Bloom Group has worked with many organisations, charities, prisons, schools, colleges, residential homes and businesses this year to grow the Royal Horticultural Society ‘Greening Grey Britain’ campaign. But RHS Britain in Bloom is not just about flowers! Judging is based on three pillars: Horticulture, Environment and Community. Beverley offers a fine patchwork of all three. Community groups, East Riding and Bishop Burton College, churches, residential homes and residents have come together to make colourful flags, bunting, banners and poppies made out of recycled bottles and wool, whilst schools have been enjoying sunflower-growing, planting bee-friendly plants and designing Bloom posters for the RHS School Gardening competitions. The Community has come together on ‘Brighter Beverley’ tidy days when members of
the public and volunteer litter pickers of the town have come together to do just that - make the town brighter. No wonder Beverley is considered one of the top ten places to live in the north of England - especially when you add in our rich
heritage, cultural scene and numerous award winning festivals!

The Mayor of Beverley, Cllr. Bryan Pearson said ‘’Huge thanks goes to all involved; they should be congratulated on their enormous efforts to grow our wonderful community! All this energy helps to keep Beverley vibrant and colourful for
residents and visitors alike to enjoy. My Mayoral proclamation goes out to you all: there is still time to tidy up your area and add a splash of colour! It would be wonderful if the retail and service businesses could pull together to tidy up the town centre. It’s amazing what a bit of weeding, cleaning, litter and gum-removal can do to the place. Let’s do our best for Beverley!’’

Town Clerk, Helen Watson and Chair of ‘Bloom’, Linda Freeman jointly said: “It has been a pleasure working with all the volunteers, groups and business involved. This year the projects are diverse and plentiful. It’s quite challenging but
working in collaboration with so many groups, giving each other so much support is wonderful.

“This is the real community part of Britain in Bloom where working partnerships blossom and the community really make a direct and positive impact. We have received so many lovely complements on the floral displays in the town this year. We look forward to welcoming Rae and James, our RHS Judges, to Beverley and hope they like it as much as we all do. Let’s hope the sun shines on our beautiful town on August 7th and 8th!”

If you would like to get involved with the Town Council Bloom Group, can volunteer to help with ‘Brighter Beverley’ groups or want further information please contact Helen Watson, the Town Clerk on 01482 874096 or email: clerk@beverley.gov.uk.

Meanwhile, let’s get planting and make sure Beverley wins this prestigious prize!