NEWS RELEASE
Embargoed until 16:00 Friday 6th September
Three groups inLanarkshire scoop top environmental prizes
Three communities from Lanarkshire were presented with Beautiful Scotland awards in recognition of their efforts in improving their local communities.
At an award ceremony in Aberdeen held on Friday 6 September, Lord Purvis, Ambassador for Keep Scotland Beautiful, announced that Beautiful Cumbernauld had won the Small City Trophy Award,Plains Community Futures Group had won the Community Involvement Award for their community allotment, and Brighter Bothwell went home with the Scottish Natural Heritage Award for Biodiversity, for their organic community garden.
In total, nine entrants from the Lanarkshire region of Scotlandcompeted, receiving the following medal certificates for their efforts:
North Lanarkshire
Beautiful Cumbernauld (Small City) – Silver
Condorrat Tenants & Residents Association (Urban) – Silver
Cumbernauld Village Action for the Community (Urban) – Silver
Overtown Brighter Village Association (Large Village) – Bronze
Plains Community Futures Group(Large Village) – Silver
South Lanarkshire
Brighter Bothwell (Small Town) – Silver Gilt
Flourishing Forth (Large Village) – Silver Gilt
Lanark in Bloom (Medium Town) – Silver
Strathaven in Bloom (Medium Town) – Silver Gilt
Commenting on Beautiful Cumbernauld, the expert volunteer judges who visited the entrant said:‘Cumbernauld’s reputation is rather unfairlybased on the old shopping centre but,thanks to the work of Cumbernauld in Bloom and associated organisations working hard, the undoubted beautiful surroundings will come to the fore. The open spaces and mature woodland, as well as wetland habitats, make Cumbernauld a haven for wildlife of all types.’
On why Plains Community Futures Groupdeserved their win they said:‘The Community Allotment area in Plains has become a social focal point in the village. People who might not have met now enjoy each other’s company in the garden which has become established over a short period. The group has made a priority to create social seating areas, raised beds and easy access for the less able and residents from the Care Home, and has a cafe area in a reclaimed container. The Primary School has plots and containers at the allotment, and a courtyard area at the joint campus. Regular Open Days bring the community together to raise funds. The Allotment Area is greatly valued and appreciated by residents, especially those living nearby, and it has brought a sense of pride and achievement to the village. There is no damage because young people are involved and consulted.’
And on why Brighter Bothwell deserved to win their award they said: ‘The garden was created in 2010 on land provided by South Lanarkshire council on a 15 year lease, with money from the Climate Challenge Fund. The garden demonstrates how wildlife can co-exist with food production. It also showcases good practice in sustainability. There are 62 raised beds including six narrow ones for easy access, and six low ones for small children. All grow edibles organically, with a few flowers allowed. The group use solar panels for energy and collect rainwater from the roof of their building for use by the plotholders. The building serves as a meeting and instructional centre. Two small polytunnels are used for propagating. Compost is made on site and there are wormeries, bird and bat boxes. An orchard and soft fruit cage have recently been added, as have a pond and bog garden with native plants and a wildflower meadow. Most recent is a bee border featuring plants particularly attractive to bees; several plotholders now keep bees. All plots are occupied and in productive use and there is a waiting list. The garden is used for activities by local schools and after school clubs. Several growers now exhibit at the local flowershow where they have been responsible for a welcome increase inentries in the fruit and veg classes.’
Beautiful Scotland is a competition run by the independent charity Keep Scotland Beautiful in partnership with the Royal Horticultural Society. Entrants are judged on their year-round horticultural achievement, environmental responsibility and their community participation.
The award ceremony is the climax of a year of continuous work by local people throughout Scotland and was attended by almost 150 people. Awards were presented to a wide range of communities, all of whom had achieved the highest scores in their categories. In addition, Discretionary Awards were given out to those who demonstrated excellence in their commitment to the campaign.
All the community groups who tirelessly seek to improve their local environments as part of the Beautiful Scotland campaign also received medal certificates to applaud their efforts.
Lord Purvis,who hosted the ceremony, said: “Keep Scotland Beautiful is delighted that Beautiful Cumbernauld, Brighter Bothwell and Plains Community Futures Group havedone so well this year.
“I would like to congratulate everyone who was involved in achieving the results forthese local areas, and would also like to commendall of the communities helping to make Lanarkshire, and Scotland a cleaner, greener place for us all to enjoy today and tomorrow - through floral enhancement, community participation, and taking responsibility for tackling the criminal activity of littering and dog fouling, Beautiful Scotland groups make a massive difference to our country.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
- Keep Scotland Beautiful is Scotland’s leading force acting, campaigning and training others to clean up local environments and to change the behaviour which blights our urban and rural landscape; it is part of its work to help make Scotland clean and green, today and tomorrow. Further details at
- Beautiful Scotland is a long-established community environmental improvement campaign run in partnership with the Royal Horticultural Society. Previously known as Beautiful Scotland in Bloom, the programme supports community groups across Scotland as they seek to improve and enhance their local environment. Further details at
- In addition to a number of discretionary awards, the class awards are based on the following categories, determined by population size:
- Wee Village Trophy
- Small Village Trophy
- Large Village Trophy
- Small Town Trophy
- Medium Town Trophy
- Large Town Trophy
- Small City Trophy
- City Trophy
- Flatted Community Trophy
- Urban Community Trophy
- Coastal Village Trophy
- Coastal Town Trophy (The David Kerr Coastal Resort Trophy)
- Business Improvement District Trophy
- Media enquiries to Andy Maciver on 07855 261244.