2009 JUDGING
Silver Rose Award (Small Town Category)
Craven College Horticulture Unit (Special Category Silver Gilt Award)
Holy Trinity Church (Special Category Silver Gilt Award)
Stepping Stones 2 Project (Special Category Merit Award)
Cenotaph Garden (Winner of War Memorials
Category - Discretionary Award)
Judges' comments -
- Introduction
On entry to Skipton town, unfortunately in a deluge of rain, you cannot fail to notice the surrounding
countryside. The town itself was full of summer floral colour, mostly provided by the council, in bloom
group and businesses. The in bloom group,
made up of many partner agencies, was formed
in 2005 and is making great strides to improve the already impressive landscape and fabric of the town. The
support of Craven College and the Skipton Business Improvement District initiative have strengthened the
group and given it long-term sustainability.
- Section A - Horticultural Achievement
The impressive mixed borders, which are full of colour
in the Church entrance way, are a credit to the
volunteers. Stepping Stones nursery's site was unbelievable, the vision and drive of the staff was
commendable and the commitment to the town's floral planting was evident on the tour. The floral
windowboxes at several public houses were full of summer colour, drawing people into the establishments. The war memorial flowerbed was very well designed and planted with a mixture of pelargoniums and sustainable planting
to create a poppy design, as in spring. The college's efforts to produce the canal boat floral feature has to be
commended. The allotments were excellent and the winning allotment in the internal competition has to be commended
for their use of space.
- Section B - Environmental Responsibility
The cleanliness of the town centre was very good,
even though it was market day. There were some
very good examples of signage around the town that
not only were informative, but reflected some of the
local heritage. The floral canal barges on the
towpath provided by the college are to be commended
and reflect well the local heritage of Skipton.
The wildflower and wildlife areas at Craven College
were well managed. The allotments had some
very good examples of how to conserve and minimise
nature's natural resources.
- Section C - Community Participation
The grant from Skipton Business Improvement District
over the next couple of years for Skipton in Bloom
will help lift the profile of Skipton within the
competition. The work that has been done with
Stepping Stones, a resource for disabled adults, and
their inclusion in the many floral features around
the town, has to be commended. The floral
canal boats were not only planted by college
students, but built and designed by the students for
their course work.
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