NEWS RELEASE
PR 15
5 November 2003
Green Flag for Royal Victoria Park
ROYAL Victoria
Park in Bath is celebrating today (Thursday, November 6) after
winning a prestigious Green Flag Award.
These recently formed awards are
given only to the country’s very best parks and green open spaces.
It is organised by the Civic Trust and CABE Space – part of the
Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment.
Royal Victoria Park, which is owned
and maintained by Bath & North East Somerset Council, is one of only
12 parks and green spaces in the south west to achieve the award.
This is the second major accolade
for the Royal Victoria Park. In September the Botanical Gardens
picked up the Britain in Bloom 2003 Park Award – making it
officially the best park in the country.
The Green Flag Award scheme is the
national standard for parks and green spaces recognises the value of
green spaces in communities, particularly urban environments, and
rewards excellent standards of park management.
The award is given after a vigorous
assessment by two judges – who visited Bath in August.
There are eight criteria which Green
Flag judges assess at each park and to achieve Green Flag status
they must be satisfied that all these points are met. They are:
The judges said in their report:
“Royal Victoria Park’s success in this year’s Green Flag Award
reflects good management of an urban park. It is recommended for the
award on the strengths of its physical appearance, diversity of
facilities, evidence of ongoing improvement works and good quality
maintenance. Royal Victoria Park should be extremely proud of its
assets and achievements.”
Cllr Nicole O’Flaherty, Executive
Member for Tourism, Leisure and Culture, said:
“To have achieved one major award
this year was fantastic. To have achieved a second in less than a
month is amazing.
“Everyone who visits Royal Victoria
Park should agree with this result. I would like to congratulate
every member of staff who works in the park. This achievement would
not have been possible without your hard work and dedication
“Royal Victoria Park is a wonderful
place to visit and spend time. Throughout 2004 the Green Flag will
be flying with pride.”
Karen Lewis, Green Flag Award
Manager at the Civic Trust, commented: “The Green Flag Award scheme
is going from strength to strength, which is just fantastic.
“Green spaces play a vital role for
quality of life and civic pride, and there is an increasing
awareness, at all levels, of their value.
“The Green Flag Award is the
benchmark for parks, and it is extremely encouraging that we have
been able to reward more parks this year. It is also – most
importantly I think – a reward for dedicated park staff.
Congratulations to them.”
Julia Thrift, Director of CABE
Space, said: “This year’s 45 percent increase in Green Flag winning
parks is a tribute to all the hard work of park managers across the
country, and we are delighted to see the scheme growing so rapidly.
“With new resources from the
government, and the support of CABE Space I look forward to seeing
the scheme continue to grow, so that even more people across the
country can enjoy the benefits of award-winning parks.”
Notes to Editors:
The Civic Trust, the country’s
leading urban environment charity, manages the Green Flag Award
scheme. The Trust’s aim is to inspire and promote progressive
improvements in the quality of urban life for everyone, and the
Green Flag Award scheme is a key part of that objective. www.civictrust.org.uk,
Tel 020 7930 0914.
CABE Space is the national champion
for parks and public spaces, and the main funding partner of the
Green Flag Award scheme. CABE Space aims to bring excellence to the
design, management and maintenance of parks and public space in our
towns and cities. Established in 2003, CABE Space is part of CABE,
the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, which
champions the quality of our buildings and spaces.
The Green Flag Award scheme is
designed to recognise and reward standards of excellence in parks
and green spaces. It is the national standard for green spaces.
The scheme is independently run by
the Civic Trust and has backing from a number of sponsors including
the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, Countryside Agency, English
Nature, English Heritage, Calor Gas and in Wales, the Countryside
Council for Wales. In England, it operates under the umbrella of
CABE Space. The Civic Trust is the country’s leading urban
environment charity, and the umbrella body for the civic society
movement. The Trust’s aim is to inspire and promote progressive
improvements in the quality of urban life for everyone, and the
Green Flag Award scheme is a key part of that objective.
www.civictrust.org.uk
CABE Space is the national champion
for parks and public spaces. CABE Space aims to bring excellence to
the design, management and maintenance of parks and public space in
our towns and cities. Established in 2003, CABE Space is part of
CABE, the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment,
which champions the quality of our buildings and spaces.
www.cabe.org.uk
The scheme was launched in 1996,
gave its first awards in 1997. It was started by a group of
individuals who were passionate about green spaces. From 1996,
these individuals, representing a range of key organisations, worked
as the Green Flag Award Steering Group. In 2003, the scheme was
gifted to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, who handed the
strategic operation to CABE Space.
Any Green Space in England and Wales
that is freely accessible to the public is eligible to enter for a
Green Flag Award. Awards are given on an annual basis and winners
must apply each year to renew their Green Flag status. The Green
Pennant Award and Green Heritage Site Status are additional schemes
under the Green Flag Award umbrella. The Green Pennant Award,
introduced in 2002, is for green spaces managed by voluntary and
community groups.
For more information, contact:
Matthew Smith,
Head of Direct Services at Bath & North East Somerset Council, on
Tel: 01225 477204 or e-mail matthew_smith@bathnes.gov.uk
Glenn Humphreys, Heritage Parks
Manager for Bath & North East Somerset Council, on Tel: 01225 482624
or e-mail glenn_humphreys@bathnes.gov.uk
Laura Sangster, Civic Trust
Communications Officer, on Tel: 0207 3891381 or e-mail lsangster@civictrust.org.uk
For comment,
contact:
Cllr Nicole
O’Flaherty, Executive Member for Tourism, Leisure and Culture, on
Tel: 01225 310341 or e-mail nicole_oflaherty@bathnes.gov.uk
Issued by: Bath &
North East Somerset Press Office, tel 01225 477827 or 477283, email:
pressoffice@bathnes.gov.uk |
