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Broseley in Bloom 2008 |
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Heart of England Results: Small Town - Broseley - Gold Award Special Award - Mrs Gillian Pope, Chairman This year the judging took place on Thursday 10th July. To commemorate the industrial history of the town the colour theme represented blast furnace flames.
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Broseley in Bloom 2007 Shropshire Results, 6th September 2007: Small Town - Broseley - Gold Award and Overall winner - Best Small Town.
Broseley in Bloom 2006 Small Town - Broseley - Gold Award Small Neighbourhoods: Jackson Avenue, Broseley - Merit Award. Judges Special Award - Keith Doran, Jackson Avenue, Broseley. Special Award - Heart of England Tourism Award for Outstanding Merit : Cllr Eric Cox, Mayor of Broseley.
The brochure for the judges was prepared by Jan Lancaster and included 51 illustrations.
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Local Agenda 21 and Sustainable Development
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IntroductionBroseley, once a thriving Shropshire industrial town, has in the recent past seen a reversal of fortune, and many of its residents feel that it needs to improve its image. With this in mind, Broseley was last year entered in the Heart of England Britain in Bloom competition for the very first time in the hope that this would encourage residents to take a critical look at their town and see what they could do to spruce it up. In less than three months, funded by a small grant from Broseley Town Council, and under the leadership of Mayor Eric Cox, the town was tidied up, unsightly areas cleared and troughs, planters and hanging baskets placed around the town. When the judges gave the town a Silver Award it seemed that everyone walked just that little bit taller. This year the town has built on the start made in 2005 by improving its appearance with a planned and sustained approach aimed at rejuvenating the centre of the town and making its gardens and open areas as attractive as possible throughout the whole year. It has also encouraged residents to keep the town free of litter, graffiti and dog fouling and to support the District Council in promoting recycling of waste. To accomplish this, the Broseley in Bloom Organisation, independent of the Town Council and with its own constitution, bank account and insurance, was set up. The formation of this Organisation enabled sponsorship and funding to be sought from both the public and the private sector. Monies raised from such sponsorship would give the managing committee the financial means to implement more ambitious projects. The members of this committee are : Gill Pope Chairman Eric Cox Manager Dot Cox Secretary Frank Selkirk Treasurer Jan Lancaster Portfolio Roy Childs Jean Jones Michael Marriott Jennie Osborn Peter Plant Michael Pope Sheena Selkirk ex officio as Mayor
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Policy and StrategyThe aim of the Broseley in Bloom Organisation is to improve the image of the town by cleaning it up, brightening dull areas, making its central shopping area more attractive and restoring a sense of civic pride to its residents. In particular, it is planned that the Memorial Gardens will become a place where both residents and visitors can relax in pleasurable surroundings. In pursuit of this aim it has § Identified areas for improvement, namely the Memorial Gardens and Sherlock Hoy Close, for the enjoyment of residents § Implemented a plan for redesign of the Memorial Gardens which are the heart of the town § Increased the floral display in the town centre § Extended areas of permanent landscaping § Encouraged local primary schools to engage in parallel projects
§ Encouraged children to keep the town free of litter and graffiti § Encouraged year round activity in keeping the town looking attractive
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Future PlansFuture plans include § Continuing to improve the town’s image § Increasing a sense of civic pride § Encouraging more community involvement § Encouraging more participation by involving youth clubs and schools § Promoting a youth project at the Birchmeadow centre § Identifying more areas for development § Penn’s Meadow, which has been neglected and is full of dock and ragwort, will be returned to wild flower meadowland § Foundry Lane entrance will be cleaned up and garden area replanted |
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Record of ActivitiesFloral DisplaysPublic areas Memorial Gardens § Identified as a major area for improvement § New layout designed and plan submitted to Town Council §
Work parties cleared old and overgrown
shrubbery and cut new beds § One bed planted out entirely with pansies which were part of a donation of 1000 plants Pritchard Memorial § Planted with tulips and wallflowers for spring display § Planted with annuals and pelargoniums in shades of pink, purple and mauve for summer colour
Cemetery § Erected hanging baskets and installed planters Bridgnorth Road entrance to town § Cut back and tidied up shrubbery § Planters put in place and filled with annuals and geraniums § Extended planting by unique Broseley town sign
Shops and retail areas § Half barrels placed along the High Street, planted with polyanthus in the spring and pansies in the summer; all these plants were donated § ‘Waterfall’ features placed at each end of the High Street and filled with summer plants § Hanging baskets erected along the length of the High Street § Competition run for the best frontage of a licensed premise elicited an enthusiastic response
§ Broseley does not have multiple stores, retail centres, bus or train stations Residential front gardens § Pamphlet delivered to every house encouraging people to keep their front gardens looking attractive § Competition for the best front garden was judged by Newport Heart of England in Bloom committee Community involvement § Working parties cleared beds, planted, weeded and dead headed, with children spontaneously joining in § Town Council allocated time for their two employees to weed and cut grass on the Memorial Gardens § Members of the Youth Club planted pots outside the Birchmeadow Centre § Girl Guides planted out troughs in Jackson Avenue § Brownies planted out troughs and are maintaining them as part of their gardening badge § Over 800 sunflower seeds distributed to primary and pre-primary schoolchildren; a competition for the tallest sunflower will be judged in the autumn § Jackson Avenue residents built on their success of achieving a Special Award last year by holding cake stalls to raise money to improve their new kerbside gardens § Residents helped by watering tubs and planters until the water bowser was delivered § Residents of Sherlock Hoy Close have placed hanging baskets and planted out flower beds § Residents along Coalport Road have cleared a section of the roadside and planted annuals § Inspired by Broseley’s entry last year, John Wilkinson Primary School has started an Environmental Club. The children have : § Laid out a vegetable garden and are growing beans, peas and onions § Planted up beds and pots in the courtyard § Dark Lane School has built two vegetable gardens and the children are, among other things, growing beans, rocket and courgettes § Mount Nursery School has a display of mini beasts and artificial flowers in E Davis & Son shop window § The children have also made a small garden and planted it out with annuals § Broseley Pre-School has planted out troughs and pots with flowers and tomatoes which the children keep watered
§ The Family Craft Group, which was set up especially for Broseley in Bloom at John Wilkinson Primary School, obtained a grant from Shropshire County Council to make a display of origami figures and flowers for the Cats’ Protection League shop window. The children also took their own photographs of flowers and were taught how to manipulate them |
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Permanent LandscapingResidential areas § Sherlock Hoy Close and Cape Fold identified as being in need of upliftment § Persuaded District Council to clear beds of old shrubs § Working parties planted shrubs and perennials for year round interest § Jackson Avenue created beds using limestone for edging Commercial premises § Hills DIY Supplies in Cockshutt Lane deliberately left as a wild area to encourage the ‘birds and the bees’ § Broseley does not have a retail or business park Public parks, gardens and open spaces § Made contact with Open Spaces Officer at the District Council to get open spaces cleared and tidied. She is cooperating to meet our needs and provide some financial help Victoria Hall § Dahlias were planted in the bed alongside the wall for autumn flowering, supplementing existing chrysanthemums Memorial Gardens § Shrubs and trees planted were chosen in complementary colours to give all year round interest § Sensory garden created behind memorial bench § Obelisk erected to improve the visual dimension of the rose bed and climbing roses were planted around it § Trees planted in memory of two local residents Entrance to Willey Hall § Lady Forester agreed to replace cherry tree and plant rhododendrons at the entrance in the autumn Health Centre and Library § Extra planters to complement those placed last year outside the Library building were planted with perennials Car parks and recycling sites § Arranged for District Council to plant spiky hedge, designed by police architect, alongside car park in Dark Lane to discourage youngsters from using it as a racing circuit and causing a nuisance § Planted daffodils at entrance to Library car park Community involvement § Broseley Local History Society planted pine trees on the Hay Cop to replace those reputedly planted to celebrate winning the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 § Local residents Linda and Bill Parker continued their clearance of unkempt land in Quarry Road; now replanted with shrubs § Michael Marriott of David Austen Roses designed and marked out the new layout for the Memorial Gardens § Heather Freeman of Heather Freeman Landscape Architect produced design for improvement of the Bridgnorth Road entrance to the town § Residents of Sherlock Hoy Close are watering and maintaining the flower beds § Dark Lane Primary School demolished some old buildings and created a walk through sensory garden which included grasses supplied by the Broseley in Bloom committee § The Mount Nursery School raised funds to build a Baby Bear Pit outside their classroom § A resident of Coalport Road kept the grass mown around the unique Broseley town sign |
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Local Agenda 21 and Sustainable DevelopmentManagement of natural areas § Interpretation boards are being prepared for sites around the town § Puddleducks pre-primary school have extended their forest classroom § Penn’s Meadow, presently full of docks and ragwort, will be returned to natural grassland § The Severn Gorge Countryside Trust, which manages some 300 hectares of land in the Gorge, has § Put up 15 nest boxes for pied flycatchers in Workhouse Coppice § Monitored breeding success § Felled certain areas of holly to improve habitat § Thinned canopy to encourage woodland plants Waste management § Dark Lane primary school has established a wormery, composts waste and recycles paper § Broseley Guest House feeds all kitchen waste into a wormery. Liquid feed from this was used to fertilise the Pritchard Memorial garden § Oakley Arnold scrap metal merchants gave out free spring bulbs for old aluminium cans § They have installed a state of the art machine which sorts cans made from different materials § They have installed a machine which extracts oil, petrol and other toxic matter from written off cars, leaving only the metal ready for compacting and recycling. The oil, petrol and tyres are reused where possible
§ Some stores in the town, including Downes in the High Street, use old egg boxes and plastic bags brought back by their customers § Broseley Bloomers used chippings from recent woodland clearance as mulch in their flower beds § They also used non peat based compost to top up some beds § Fortnightly collection of ‘green bin’ garden waste by the District Council § Broseley has a recycling point for waste paper, bottles, clothes and shoes § Plans are in hand to apply for a licence to draw water from the Severn to fill the water bowser |
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Local Environmental QualityCleanliness of public areas § Liaised with District Council to spray weeds and keep public areas tidy § Dark Lane pre-primary organised a litter pick § District Council sponsored litter pick with refreshments afterwards § Street furniture repainted § Work party which included children cleaned street signs § Children tidied up round Jackson Avenue street sign Community involvement § Distributed leaflet to all households urging people to keep their front gardens and frontages tidy and weed free § Invited to have a presence at the town’s Youth Day event § District Council Urban Regeneration Officer placed flyers in youth clubs and schools asking for volunteers to ‘keep the town tidy’ § Party of community servers helped with various tasks |
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Public Awareness§ Public meetings held to explain plans and promote this year’s entry § Screened community channel video § Leaflet setting out plans for this year’s entry and urging anyone who could to offer help was produced and distributed to all households. The printing of this was supported by the Urban Regeneration Unit of the Bridgnorth District Council § Tabards, sponsored by Ironbridge Rotary Club, were overprinted with Broseley in Bloom slogans § Working party posters printed by local company placed around the town § Obtained cooperation of local press and received good coverage of press releases and photographs sent to the Bridgnorth Journal and the Shropshire Star § Featured in 'Shropshire' Magazine § Radio Shropshire have publicised our efforts § Held displays at various events in the area Rose pruning demonstration and workshop held in the Memorial Gardens |
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SponsorshipBecause Broseley in Bloom is now an autonomous body, and no longer part of the Town Council, it was able to solicit sponsorship from the Town Council as well as the District Council and from businesses. § Letters inviting sponsorship sent to all businesses in the town received an excellent response § A donation was made from the proceeds of this year’s Mayor’s Charity Ball § People gave donations in memory of loved ones Support in kind was also received § From local garden centre § A member of David Austen Roses’ staff, who lives in Broseley, gave valuable support and advice § A local landscape architect gave design advice § Tabards donated by Ironbridge Rotary Club. These were overprinted with slogans encouraging people to join the Broseley Bloomers
§ Local companies supplied the water bowser, shotblasted and repainted it
§ A local business did colour copying of posters and portfolio § A local architect did colour printing of display boards § Residents donated plants List of sponsors Financial sponsorship was received from A J Taylor Adonis Construction BBR Engineering Bridgnorth District Council Bridgnorth Library Broseley Cricket Club Broseley Guest House Broseley House Chinese Restaurant Broseley Medical Centre Broseley Memorials Broseley Town Council Catherine’s Bakery Chris Bonsall Donations from funeral of Margaret Venn Edward and Sally Benthall Elcock Reisen EON Power Station Heather Freeman Landscape Architect Hills DIY Supplies J R Gough John & Val Homer Just Ann Hairdressers Lady Forester Mrs Adams Northwood and Sons Oakley Arnold Syspal The C J Williams Funeral Service The Old Rectory Guest House The Spar Yvonne Miles Sponsorship in kind was received from Alan Jones Bardon Aggregates Bryan Cox David Austen Roses Frank Selkirk Gerald Instone Greg Day Heather Freeman Landscape Architect Hire! Freeman James Hurdley Michael Marriott Oyster Communications Geoff Owen Roden Nurseries through Border Alpine Telford Farm Machinery Anyone else who may have been inadvertently omitted! As well as all the people who put in time and effort at the working parties and other activities |
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