Flying the Green Flag of success

Archived press release

Date Published: 03/08/09

Bedgrove Park is now the proud owner of a Green Flag

Two of Aylesbury’s most popular parks will be flying the flag after being nationally recognised as shining examples of outstanding green spaces.

Bedgrove Park and Vale Park have been accredited with the Green Flag Award, which is the national standard for parks and green spaces.

All parks entered for Green Flag status are judged on how welcoming, safe and well maintained they are and must have a strong involvement from the local community.

The judges were particularly impressed by the involvement of local people such as the Bedgrove Residents’ Association and Vale Countryside Volunteers and commented upon how well looked after and tidy the parks are.

It is the first time that Bedgrove Park has been awarded the Green Flag and comes on the back of a number of improvements to the popular attraction.

A multi-use games area, children’s play area, teenage play and fitness equipment and a youth shelter with solar powered lighting are among the new facilities in the park.

It is the second year that Vale Park has been awarded Green Flag status – which is the park and open spaces equivalent of the Blue Flag that is handed to clean beaches across the country.

Aylesbury Vale District Council recently started work on the latest phase of the redevelopment of Vale Park, providing a central avenue and new entrance. The work is part of a project led by the council to regenerate and improve the park.

Improvements to date have involved installing a new children’s play area and creating a new sports zone equipped with tennis courts, bowling green and multi-sports area. The old tennis courts have also been removed and have been replaced with a large area of grass.

Other work to be completed this summer includes the renovation of the footpath leading from the formal gardens entrance to the drinking fountain and the removal of the railings along Lovers’ Walk from the new entrance up to the bowling green. The existing formal gardens and shelter will also be removed in preparation for a fresh garden layout.

Councillor Janet Blake, Chairman of the Council, said: “This award shows that both Bedgrove Park and Vale Park are among the best parks and open spaces in the country – and we are really proud of them both. A lot of hard work has been put in by council staff, residents and volunteers to ensure we achieved this standard and their efforts are really appreciated. I would encourage everyone to visit these parks and enjoy the facilities they have to offer.”

The Green Flag Awards are run by environmental charity, Keep Britain Tidy, GreenSpace and BTCV. This year is a milestone year for the awards as the number of Green Flag and Green Pennant Award winners has passed 1,000 for the first time.

Phil Barton, Chief Executive of Keep Britain Tidy, said: “I would like to congratulate this year’s winners, who have worked hard throughout the year to keep their parks to a high standard and ensure they are pleasant and enjoyable spaces for the whole community.”