Huntingdon In Bloom

Portfolio 2015

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Judging Route 8th July 2015

9.30am to 12 noon

Route

Start: Coneygear Park 9.30am

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INDEX TO PORTFOLIO Front Cover – Deputy Mayor, Cllr Tanya Forster and community groups at the Huntingdon In Bloom Launch at Coneygear Park.

1. Front Cover Photograph 2. Map of Town Showing Judging Itinerary 3. Index 4. Welcome to Huntingdon 5. Huntingdon In Bloom Committee and Meeting Agenda 6. Huntingdon In Bloom Meetings Calendar 7. Huntingdon In Bloom Launch Event (photographs taken on 21st April 2015)

Section A – Horticultural Achievement

8. A1 Impact (photographs taken on 26th June 2015) 9. A2 Horticultural Practice and A3 Residential and Community Gardening (photographs taken

25th and 26th June 2015) 10. A4 Business and Premises and A5 Green Spaces (photograph taken 26th June 2015) 11. Planting Efforts (photographs taken 20th April 2015 and 1st May 2015) 12. Church garden planting (photographs taken 23rd April 2015) 13. Best Kept Front Garden Competition Entries (photographs taken 26th June 2015) 14. Best Kept Pub Garden or Floral Display Entries (photographs taken 26th June 2015) 15. Waterless Toilet at Sallowbush Road Allotments Application

Section B – Environmental Responsibility

16. B1 Conservation and Biodiversity and B2 Resource Management (photographs taken 13th February 2015 and 17th June 2015)

17. B3 Local heritage 18. B4 Local environmental quality (photographs taken 26th June 2015) 19. B5 Pride of place (photograph taken 29th June 2015) 20. Litter pick and Anti-chewing gum poster campaign (photographs taken 27th March 2015,

17th June 2015 and 26th June 2015) 21. Local wildlife – Huntingdonshire Beekeepers Association and pond dipping at

Hinchingbrooke Park (photographs taken 6th May 2015) Section C – Community Participation

22. C1 Development and continuity, C2 Communication and Education and C3 Community Involvement (photographs taken 19th June 2015)

23. C4 Year round involvement and C5 Funding and Support (photographs taken 21st April 2015 and 17th June 2015)

24. Hunters Down Care Home projects (photographs taken 19th November 2014 and 21st May 2015)

25. Hinchingbrooke Hospital communal gardens and the WI Flower Bed project (photographs taken 9th June 2015, 17th June 2015 and 26th June 2015)

26. Huntingdon Train Station Memorial Bed and Cromwell Academy Eco Warriors (photographs taken 20th April 2015, 21st May 2015, 12th June 2015 and 16th June 2015

27. Thongsley Fields Forest project and Easter Snow Drop planting (photographs taken 23rd April, 30th April 2015 and 2nd June 2015)

28. Press coverage 30. Funding, Sponsors and Thank-yous.

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Welcome to Huntingdon in Bloom 2015

Introduction Welcome to Huntingdon! After a short break, 2015 is the year Huntingdon returns to enter Anglia In Bloom. We’ve been working hard on some great projects in the hopes of recreating the success the town has achieved in past years. Every In Bloom project has been carried out with community groups and kind volunteers, all of whom have given up their time to enhance and improve their local environment. All activities and projects were undertaken in the hope of benefitting the whole community for the long term, with many projects being on-going. Huntingdon has a diverse community, so it was important for the In Bloom team to ensure all aspects were covered. Groups and volunteers have been of all ages and abilities, but the only skills required to be a part of the team are enthusiasm and passion for the town. The Huntingdon Town Council’s Grounds Team works tirelessly to ensure that the town’s flowerbeds are filled with beautiful floral displays throughout the year. As well as flower displays, the In Bloom entry consists of a range of projects around the town, involving a wide range of different groups from the local community. Many projects we have worked are all contained within this portfolio, however a number of In Bloom activities have included:

The Best Kept Front Garden Competition

The Best Kept Street Competition

The Best Kept Allotment Competition

The Best Kept Pub Garden/Floral Display Competition

Cub and Scout Community Litter Picks in the town centre

Huntingdon and Peterborough WI Flower Bed rejuvenation

Hunters Down Care Home Communal Garden improvement project

Huntingdon Railway Station Memorial Flower Bed project

Cromwell Academy Eco Warriors Club projects

Thongsley Fields School ‘Forest’ Area project

Thongsley Fields School Anti-Litter and Anti-Dog Mess posters

Hartford Infant School Anti-Chewing Gum Superhero Posters

Hinchingbrooke Hospital Gardens projects

Communal Snow Drop planting

Community Orchard planting

Educational Days at Hinchingbrooke Country Park with Bee Keeping and Pond Dipping

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Huntingdon In Bloom Committee

The Huntingdon in Bloom committee meets at the Town Hall. These meetings focus on projects to contribute towards the portfolio. An agenda and minutes are produced and circulated prior to each meeting. The committee consists of 6 members with 20 associate members. List of Committee Members

David Jameson - Chairman

Natasha Pierson - Secretary

Ben Wilson – Cromwell Academy

Alyce Barber & Karen Aspinall – Tesco Extra Community Space

1 Councillor (Cllr Mulcahy) List of Associate Members

Philip Peacock – Huntingdon Town Council (HTC)

Peter Haynes - HTC

Dennis Smith - HTC

Hayley Burns - HTC

Beth Gordon - Green Officer HDC

Jan Freemantle- HDC

Alison Gray – Hinchingbrooke Park

Adrian Woodbridge – Medway Christian Fellowship

Esme Richardson – Snack Shack

Nicky Oliver – Hartford Infant School

Amanda Gold – Independent Living

Paul Robins – Huntingdon Scout Group

Hazel Gough – Huntingdon Girl Guides

Bernard Dable – Huntingdon Grafham Water Lions Club

Teresa Steer – Huntingdon Railway Station

Ann Colbert – Hinchingbrooke Hospital Gardens

Rebecca Britton – Urban and Civic/Alconbury Weald

Sally Dalley – Huntingdon and Peterborough WI

Jo Payne – Thongsley Fields School

Roger Wood – Huntingdon Bee Keeping Association

Example of Huntingdon in Bloom Committee Meeting Agenda

1. Apologies 2. Notes of last committee meeting/matters arising 3. Funding 4. Planting Update 5. Judging Route 6. Launch 7. Press – About Town, Huntingdon Live, Hunts Post 8. Schools and young people projects 9. Projects Update 10. Local Competitions 11. AOB 12. Date of next meeting

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Huntingdon In Bloom Meetings Calendar

22nd January 2015 – Meeting with Hinchingbrooke Park Head Ranger and Activities Coordinator 11th February 2015 – Meeting with Medway Christian Fellowship and Coneygear Park Snack Shack 13th February 2015 – Meeting with Hartford Junior School – Anti chewing gum poster campaign 18th February 2015 – Meeting with Independent Living Coordinator – Volunteer opportunities 19th February 2015 – Meeting with Scout Leader – Litter Pick and Community Allotment 11th March 2015 – Meeting with Huntingdon Grafham Water Lions Club – Sponsorship and Volunteering 11th March 2015 – Meeting with the Papworth Trust – Community planter for residents 17th March 2015 – Meeting with Hinchingbrooke Hospital Gardens group – Volunteer support 17th March 2015 – Meeting with Teresa Steer from Huntingdon Train Station – Memorial Flower Bed 17th March 2015 – Meeting with Tesco Community Champions – Sponsorship and Volunteering 19th March 2015 – Meeting with Beth Gordon of HDC – Road sweeping, verge cutting and flower bed planting 23rd March 2015 – Meeting with Benjamin Wilson from Cromwell Academy – Eco Warriors 1st April 2015 – Meeting with Rebecca Britton from Urban and Civic/Alconbury Weald – Sponsorship opportunities 7th April 2015 – Meeting with Sally Dalley from Huntingdon and Peterborough WI – Flower bed and Thinking Soldier War Memorial sponsorship 16th April 2015 – Meeting with Sally Dalley from WI to confirm planting plans for flower bed 20th April 2015 – Meeting with Ben Wilson and the Eco Warriors from Cromwell Academy – Eco Warrior Committee meeting 21st April 2015 – Meeting with Ann Colbert at the Hinchingbrooke Hospital gardens 22nd April 2015 – Meeting with Jo Payne from Thongsley about Coneygear Park poster designs and improvements to Courtyard area 29th April 2015 – Eco Warrior Assembly at Cromwell Academy 29th April 2015 – Meeting with Jo Payne from Thongsley School to look at a forest area 5th May 2015 – Meeting with Roger Wood from the Huntingdonshire Bee Keeping Association 6th May 2015 – Meeting with Jo Payne from Thongsley School to deliver logs for a forest area 12th May 2015 – Planting session at Huntingdon Train Station with Tesco Community Champions 20th May 2015 – WI Flower bed planting and trellis installation completed 21st May 2015 – Hunters Down Garden Party – volunteer planting activity day 2nd June 2015 – Huntingdon In Bloom Committee meeting 3rd June 2015 – Meeting with Jan Freemantle from HDC about installation of chewing gum posters on town centre lamp posts 12th June 2015 – Meeting with Ben Wilson and Alyce Barber at Cromwell Academy to confirm presentation arrangements and for an Eco Warrior planting session 16th June 2015 – Meeting with Ann Colbert at Hinchingbrooke Hospital Gardens to present sponsored plants 17th June 2015 – Huntingdon In Bloom Committee Meeting 25th June 2015 – WI sponsorship plaque meeting 29th June 2015 – Luminus Neighbourhood Wardens Meeting

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This year’s Huntingdon In Bloom launch event was the planting of a community orchard in Coneygear Park, Huntingdon. The orchard is made up of a mixture of fruit trees, all kindly sponsored by local community groups and businesses. The orchard was officially opened by the Deputy Mayor of Huntingdon (2014/15), Cllr Tanya Forster

The event was attended by many of the sponsors, who had the chance to choose their tree and plant it in the ground. A plaque was also installed featuring the names of the sponsors to mark the launch of Huntingdon In Bloom 2015.

Huntingdon In Bloom Launch Event – 21st April 2015

Trees were donated by Cos Productions, Huntingdon Grafham Water Lions Club, Hunters Down, Tesco Extra Huntingdon Community Space, Huntingdon Girlguiding, Huntingdon Town Council, Leonard Cheshire Disability, Luminus, Scope, Snack Shack, Wilkinsons and Young Carers Trust Cambridgeshire

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SECTION A: Horticultural Achievement

A1: IMPACT The main theme of the summer bedding plants around Huntingdon this year is Parisian, which is represented in the designs and colour schemes chosen. The flowers used include geraniums, begonias, fuchsias, cosmos, amaranthus and marigolds. The flowers in the tower planters, window boxes and barrier baskets represent a different theme and are a ‘patriotic mix’, a mixture of reds, whites and blues, chosen to mark the VE Day celebrations that took place in May. In order for the planting to have maximum visual effect, there is a variety of different shrub beds and herbaceous plants. Roses are also planted to enhance and improve planting efforts, creating focal points and encouraging wildlife to flourish in the town. This planting is more sustainable and long term planting, to compliment the seasonal bedding plants. Herbaceous borders can also be admired on Brampton Road and at the Riverside Park. There are a number of conservation areas in Huntingdon, one of which being Hinchingbrooke Country Park. Many areas of the Park are planted for foliage effect with a fantastic team of Rangers and volunteers on hand to ensure all areas are maintained to the highest possible standard. Huntingdon is fortunate to have many beautiful historical landmarks, some of which are used to enhance floral and planting displays. The WI has sponsored the planting at the Thinking Solider War Memorial to mark their 100th anniversary and further feature planting can be admired at the Corn Drill and Cannon Sites. A vast majority of planting in the town is maintained by Huntingdon Town Council, with the Grounds Team watering and dead heading all floral displays in accordance with the weather and its demands. Hanging baskets and tubs are watered once a week and are maintained to the highest possible standard.

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A2: HORTICULTURAL PRACTICE The plants used in the floral displays around the town have been grown from seeds or plugs, and are cultivated and maintained by the Grounds Team at Huntingdon Town Council. Sustainability has been taken into consideration through the use of drought resistant plants in the summer bedding. In order to ensure that all bedding plants and displays have the best chance of flourishing, base

fertiliser and compost is laid down prior to planting and all hanging baskets are given liquid food once a week. To try and avoid the use of any chemicals, disease resistant plant varieties are selected for planting and pest control is used if necessary. To ensure a high quality plant selection, all 15,000 bedding plants are grown by Huntingdon Town Council at the KGV Nursery. To try and make planting as sustainable as possible, herbaceous borders are planted for year round displays. Plants such as lavenders are planted in the cemetery

gardens to encourage biodiversity and enhance local wildlife. The water for all plants is extracted from the river to save on resources and recycle natural materials available. Huntingdon’s bedding displays are planted twice a year for summer and winter displays. It is hoped that in the long term, these display areas will be expanded on to enhance visual impact and encourage more wildlife to the town. There are also plans for new landscaping and planting to be done at an area in Snowdonia Way. A3 RESIDENTIAL AND COMMUNITY GARDENING Residential gardens have got involved with the In Bloom activities through the annual ‘Best Kept Front Garden’, ‘Best Kept Street’ and ‘Best Kept Pub Floral Display’ competitions. The allotment sites in Huntingdon continue to be popular with local residents with the annual ‘Best Kept Allotment’ competition, and funding has also been applied to install a ‘WooWoo’ waterless toilet at one of the four allotment sites in Huntingdon. There are a number of shared residential and communal spaces that benefit from the local community working together to improve the areas that they live in. Examples of these spaces are the Hunters Down Care Home communal gardens and Victoria Square.

Huntingdon’s four allotment sites offer over 250 allotment plots, all of which are in constant demand. There are a number of communal plots used by local schools and Scout groups and it is hoped that Huntingdon Tesco Extra Community Champions will soon be taking on a plot to work with numerous community groups. The Primrose Lane allotment site has set up a ‘Chicken Club’ where a number of plot holders work together to look after each other’s chickens. All excess produce and scraps are kept aside to feed the chickens. Our Town is lucky to host a large number of public buildings, many of which have maintained outdoor spaces to enhance the

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surrounding landscape. The Huntingdon In Bloom team has worked with a number of Schools to improve their outdoor spaces and the Grounds Team from Huntingdon Town Council works hard to visually enhance public buildings around the Town such as the Churches, the Town Hall and the Medway Community Centre. A4 BUSINESS AND PREMISES Local businesses and organisations have also been keen to be a part of the In Bloom campaign. There has been planting all around town, including the train and bus station, the local churchyards and other tourist attractions such as the Cromwell Museum, the Thinking Soldier and the Sebastopol Cannon Site. Many local pubs expressed great enthusiasm into entering the ‘Best Kept Pub Garden/Floral Display’ competition. The Falcon Inn has made huge efforts to bring the pub back to life, converting the former Car Park into a Pub Garden and making sure the courtyard area looks bright and welcoming at all times. Retail outlets along the High Street have entered into the In Bloom spirit, with businesses such as Gathercole and Ward using their small outdoor space to inject colour and visual enhancement to the street. Huntingdon has numerous outdoor spaces and leisure sites which all maintain their grounds to an extremely high standard. The One Leisure Sports Facility along with the Bowls and Tennis Club keep their greens to an exceptional standard and the Football Club at Jubilee Park is situated in a beautiful outdoor setting. Local businesses have also been extremely generous with supporting the In Bloom campaign, particularly with funding, sponsorship and volunteering time. The planters and displays at Huntingdon Train Station have been sponsored by local nursery Cranbrook Plants and by local developer, Urban & Civic for Alconbury Weald. Huntingdon Tesco Extra Community Champions have been instrumental in the success of the campaign, offering numerous plants and endless hours of volunteer time. A5 GREEN SPACES Parks and open spaces around the town are maintained by Huntingdon Town Council and Huntingdonshire District Council, with verges being managed by Cambridgeshire County Council. All three tiers of local government work extremely closely to ensure that Huntingdon’s green spaces are highly maintained, to improve and enhance the town that we live and work in. Huntingdon is lucky to have so many Parks and Open Spaces for everyone to enjoy. The areas maintained by Huntingdon Town Council are Bloomfield Park, Coneygear Park, Castle Hills, Spring Common, KGV Field, Claytons Way, Hartford Playing Fields and Sallowbush Green. On top of these outdoor open spaces, there are also some great woodland areas at Hinchingbrooke Country Park and at Jubilee Park. It is important to the Town to constantly encourage new growth. Bulb and tree planting has taken place over the last six months at Coneygear Park and Castle Hills. As a result of Huntingdon’s ongoing planting efforts, Copses can be found at both Coneygear Park and Hinchingbrooke Park. These two locations boast fantastic orchard spaces, both having a variety of fruit trees. It is hoped that these orchards will help to enhance sustainability in the local community, developing into sustainable areas to improve community involvement and ownership. Shelterbelts are important in Huntingdon, helping to make the landscape more resilient and sustainable. Shelterbelts can be found at Castle Hills and Coneygear Park. These shelterbelts help

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to conserve fertile soil, protect water quality, enhance air movement and biological connectivity in the landscape.

PLANTING EFFORTS

The grounds team grow 15,000 of their own

plants to be displayed around the town.

The plants grown for the summer bedding

displays include begonias, geraniums,

petunias and drought tolerant plants.

The colour schemes for these plants are

orange, reds and pastels.

Planting at the Sebastopol Cannon Site.

Commemorative WWI Bench installed

September 2014.

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Clockwise from top left: Planting at Millfield Court, Planting at All Saints Church, More planting at

All Saints Church, Planting at St Mary’s Church

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Residential Gardens – Best Kept Front Garden

The In Bloom Committee traditionally runs a series of ‘Best Kept’ Competitions. This year we had five entries to the Best Kept Front Garden Competition. Photographs of the entries can be seen below.

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Best Kept Pub Garden or Floral Display

As with the Best Kept Front Garden competition, the In Bloom Committee is running a Best Kept Pub Garden or Floral Display competition. The Pubs that have entered this year are: The Barley Mow, The Old Bridge, The Falcon Inn and the King of the Belgians.

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Waterless Toilet at Sallowbush Road Allotments

Huntingdon Town Council has planned to install a

waterless toilet at the Sallowbush Road allotment

site. The toilet is eco-friendly – it does not use

water, electricity or chemicals.

To assist with the expenditure, funding for the

toilet has been applied for through the Big Lottery

‘Awards for All’ scheme.

It is hoped that the toilet will be installed in Winter

2015.

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SECTION B: Environmental Responsibility

Introduction

Huntingdon is fortunate in having large areas of open space where biodiversity can flourish. Conservation areas in Huntingdon are extremely important to the town and arrangements are in place to ensure these spaces are well maintained and protected. A number of these areas are:

Hinchingbrooke Country Park

Spring Common

The Great Ouse Riverside Meadows – Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

Bloomfield Park

Coneygear Park

Churches and Cemeteries

Stukeley Meadows

Castle Hills B1 CONSERVATION AND BIODIVERSITY Huntingdon is lucky to have many outdoor spaces rich with biodiversity. There are a number of preserved areas such as Riverside Meadows and Hinchingbrooke Park, which have teams to ensure they are well maintained. Hinchingbrooke Park is probably the space that is most well-known for its biodiversity, due to the number of activity and educational days held there all year round. These days are arranged for local schools and also for members of the public wanting to learn more about their local environment. Evening activities at the Park include countryside walks and bat trails, and for those interested in our nectar rich friends, the Huntingdonshire Beekeeping Association (HBKA) keeps 12 hives at the Park’s Apiary. Huntingdon In Bloom has worked with HBKA during their educational days to inform local school children about how important bees are for the local environment.

Huntingdon is host to a beautiful wild flower garden down Grammar School Walk. The building that this garden adjoins is currently under renovation with potential interference caused to the garden area. The planning application for the building works contains a number of material planning considerations which state that the conservation area will be saved and enhanced. These conditions are in compliance with the draft Local Plan (Heritage Assets and their settings LP31) and Huntingdon’s Urban Design Framework 2005.

B2 RESOURCE MANAGEMENT Efforts are high in Huntingdon to make the most of resources and to reduce waste. A number of Huntingdon Schools have either been awarded the Green Flag award, or are working towards achieving it. Cromwell Academy is one School working its way towards the award. They have a number of compost bins and water butts, along with a small wind turbine, solar panels and use grey water for their toilet facilities. The four

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allotment sites in Huntingdon all have communal compost heaps to encourage the recycling of resources and it is hoped that water butts will be installed at the sites in the coming year. The addition of the waterless toilet at the Sallowbush Road allotment site will provide a free facility for all plotholders and will provide additional compost material in years to come. During certain times of the year, Huntingdon Town Council provides tree chippings to the allotment sites for improvements to pathways. Local schools have also benefitted from donations of logs following scheduled tree felling in Huntingdon. Statistics from Huntingdonshire District Council show that garden recycling has been on the increase year on year in Huntingdon: 2012/13 – 29.89% 2013/14 – 31.52% 2014/15 (up to January 2015) – 33.01% With over 15,000 plants around the Town Centre, there’s a lot of watering to be done. To save on resources, water is taken from the River Ouse to keep the Town’s floral displays to the highest possible standard. B3 LOCAL HERITAGE Huntingdon is fortunate to have a number of Listed Buildings, memorials and plaques which are centrally located to enable the residents to enjoy and feel the character of this historic town which was granted a Royal Charter in 1205. The Huntingdon Town trail gives visitors a walking tour of 41 significant sites around the town whilst specific trails are available relating to Oliver Cromwell and the part Huntingdon played in the Great War.

The renowned Architect Robert Hutchinson has a significant influence on the Town and designed the Priory Road Grade II Non-Conformist Mortuary chapels, adjacent lodge and provided the layout of the cemetery. He was also involved in the rebuilding of the Cromwell Museum in 1877 and construction of the Archdeaconry Library and Hall behind the Corn Drill. Robert Hutchinson died in 1894 and is buried in the Priory Road cemetery he had created. Oliver Cromwell was born in the town and like Samuel Pepys, attended school at the now Cromwell Museum. The Town Seal and Cromwell plaque are incorporated within the wall of the former Anglian Water Head Office. This building is being converted into residential accommodation with the historic seal and plaque preserved, retained and featured within the proposed landscaping.

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The Grade I listed Medieval All Saints Church within the market square and Grade I listed St Marys church are both undergoing major internal renovations and restorations. St Marys re-opened at the end of June, with All Saints Church about to close whilst works take place. It is believed the font, from St Johns Church within All Saints church was used to baptise Oliver Cromwell. Members of the Cromwell family are buried in All Saints church. Huntingdon Town Council Grounds Team maintains the churchyard gardens and grounds at St Marys, All Saints, the closed churchyards at St Johns in addition to the cemeteries around the town. Planting schemes within these areas are renewed throughout the year. The Market Square surrounded by Georgian and listed buildings has recently been enhanced by the re-opening of the 16th Century Falcon Inn which reputedly the headquarters of Oliver Cromwell during the Civil War. The Grade II* Town Hall dominates south side of the Market Square with the “Thinking Soldier” War Memorial sculpted by Kathleen Scott, the widow of Scott of the Antarctic. It was paid for by the Women’s Institute and was unveiled in 1923 by the Earl of Sandwich. The Women’s Institute are sponsoring the planting at the “Thinking Soldier” to commemorate 100 years of the organisation. B4 LOCAL ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY Huntingdon prides itself on looking after its environment as a community. There are a number of stakeholders key to ensuring that the Town is safe, clean and welcoming. These include: BID Huntingdon Town Rangers – responsible for removing fly posting, ad-hoc Town Centre litter picks and reporting of any graffiti or vandalism Huntingdonshire District Council – Bin collections, road and path sweeping, anti-chewing gum posters, grass cutting, car park maintenance Huntingdon Town Council – litter picks, floral displays and baskets, graffiti removal, vandalism repairs, dog foul bins Huntingdon In Bloom has worked with a number of community groups to improve and enhance the local environmental quality with projects such as:

Community Litter Pick with the Huntingdon Cubs and Scouts

Anti-Litter Poster Campaign for Coneygear Park with Thongsley School

Anti-Chewing Gum Poster Campaign for the Town Centre with Hartford Infant School

Community Allotment with the Huntingdon Scouts

Vacant allotment plots maintained by Independent Living Volunteers and Huntingdon Town Council to avoid the spread of weeds

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Huntingdon is also constantly striving to reduce the number of vacant premises in the town. In 2013, the percentage of vacant plots was 14%. In January 2015, this number had reduced to just 8% with the UK average being 10.4%. BID Huntingdon works continually with Huntingdon’s landlords to try and further reduce this figure. B5 PRIDE OF PLACE We are lucky to have a town full of such wonderful parks and open spaces, but without clean and safe furniture, clear and welcoming signage and effective upkeep of these areas, Huntingdon wouldn’t be what it is today. Huntingdon Town Council works tirelessly to ensure that street furniture is regularly cleaned and refurbished when necessary as well as making improvements to the landscape where possible. Natural hedges have been planted at the allotment sites and box hedging has been planted at the cemetery as opposed to installing a brick wall. There are plans to replace the town signs to the main entrances of Huntingdon, updating them with the latest Twin Town, Gubbio in Italy. Signage is very prominent in Huntingdon with noticeboards installed around the town, at the four allotment sites in Huntingdon and at many of the Parks and Play areas. As part of the ongoing efforts to improve and enhance areas in the town, a WWI commemorative seat was installed at the Sebastopol Cannon Site back in September 2014, to mark the centenary of the outbreak of WWI. It is hoped that a second bench to mark the anniversary of WWII will be installed at the site later on this year.

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Cub and Scout Litter Picks – Bloomfield Park and Huntingdon’s Town Centre

Anti – Chewing Gum Campaign – Hartford Infant School

Children at Hartford Infant School

worked on a project to design a

superhero for Huntingdon. Their designs

were made into posters to be displayed

on the ‘gum targets’ in Huntingdon’s

High Street to encourage people to

dispose of their gum properly.

Huntingdon In Bloom worked with three local

Cub Groups and one local Scout Group to carry

out a community litter pick in Huntingdon. The

Cub groups worked in small teams clearing up

Bloomfield Park and the Scouts were tasked with

clearing Grammar School Walk, the Market

Square and the High Street after a very busy and

messy Market day. The groups were awarded a

community badge for their work.

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Local Wildlife – Hinchingbrooke Park Bee Keepers and Activity Days

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SECTION C: Community Participation

C1 DEVELOPMENT AND CONTINUITY Huntingdon In Bloom has partnered with many local groups of volunteers, schools and organisations to help bring the community together in working to make their town a nicer place to be. All projects have been planned and implemented to ensure sustainability and improvement to the areas worked on. Some of the ongoing projects undertaken as part of the In Bloom initiative have been:

Work to the Hinchingbrooke Hospital Communal Gardens

The installation of Coneygear Park’s Community Orchard

Community Allotment Plot for the Huntingdon Scouts

Vegetable patches planted at Cromwell Academy

Woodland Area/’Forest Project’ at Thongsley Fields School

The results of these projects will be hugely beneficial to many people in the community. The improvements to the Hospital Gardens will provide a calm and reflective space for patients and relatives and the projects with all of the young people groups will provide an ongoing platform of learning about the environment and the importance of sustainability. The benefit of the Community Orchard will extend not only to the fruits produced, but also as an enjoyable space for members of the community to visit. As a sponsor, Hunters Down Care Home plans to take some of its residents to the orchard for picnics and afternoon teas. Huntingdon’s community allotments with the Scout groups and Huntingdon Tesco Extra are hoped

to reap produce in the months and years to come, which can be donated to local care homes. Many of the local schools now have their own vegetable patches, with the produce being used in the schools themselves and also for children to take home and enjoy. To help educate children as to where their food comes from Huntingdon Tesco Extra offers ‘Farm to Fork’ tours, showing the younger community where their food comes from. C2 COMMUNICATION AND EDUCATION Huntingdon In Bloom has worked with many groups to engage with different community sectors and to increase awareness about key issues in the town. Environmental issues such as littering and keeping the town clean have been raised with local schools and Scout groups through the creation of posters and group litter picks. Biodiversity and life cycles have been topics covered through educational days at

Hinchingbrooke Park as well as through Huntingdon Tesco Extra offering educational trips to the supermarket to make children aware as to where their food comes from. A fantastic amount of press coverage has been achieved to tell the local community about the activities of Huntingdon In Bloom, which can all be found on pages 28 and 29. Coverage has been achieved in Huntingdon’s local paper, the Hunts Post, in BID Huntingdon’s LIVE magazine, in Huntingdon Town Council’s About Town magazine, on Twitter, Facebook, noticeboards and blogs.

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C3 COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT Huntingdon In Bloom has engaged with many local groups with the hope of expanding relationships and links over the coming years. The 2015 campaign has been lucky to have so many ages, abilities and dedicated volunteers to help make our town a vibrant, safe and welcoming place to live and work. Members of the community aged from 6 to 96 have taken part, all bringing value to the overall goal of the In Bloom initiative. From partnering with Schools, Care Homes, Disability Groups, Churches, Retail Outlets, Public Houses and Residents, the In Bloom team has encouraged participation from the whole community to strengthen the aim of making everyone aware about how important our environment is.

C4 YEAR ROUND INVOLVEMENT We hope that this portfolio and our tour of Huntingdon will be able to demonstrate the huge amount of work that members of our community have put in over the last few months. Our press cuttings demonstrate that many of the projects have been showcased to the wider community, sending out a message that Huntingdon cares about its surroundings and natural environment. There are already plans in place for the 2016 campaign, including:

The refurbishment of the Hinchingbrooke Hospital Pond Garden

The extension of Thongsley Fields Primary School woodland exploratory area

The installation of communal water butts at the allotment sites in Huntingdon

The refurbishment and installation of play equipment at Coneygear Park

The re-seeding of the football pitches at Coneygear Park

The planting of a centenary WI winter flower bed

The creation of a ‘Friends of Huntingdon In Bloom’ Business Support Network

A fundraising stall at Huntingdon’s Riverside Gala C5 FUNDING AND SUPPORT The amount of support shown for the return of Huntingdon In Bloom has been overwhelming – not just from a funding aspect, but from the amount of time and dedication offered from voluntary members of the community. Huntingdon Town and District Councils have worked tirelessly to ensure that the town’s floral displays bring bursts of colour and scent; encouraging wildlife and biodiversity as much as possible. Additionally, a number of local businesses have been extremely generous with the sponsorship of flower tubs and baskets. In order to maintain and hopefully increase the level of support, it is hoped that we will introduce a ‘Friends of Huntingdon In Bloom’ where local businesses can join for an annual subscription. Huntingdon In Bloom newsletters will be issued to all ‘Friends of Huntingdon In Bloom’ to keep the profile of the campaign at a high level. Through the use of social media and local press, Huntingdon In Bloom will continue to engage with all community groups and stakeholders to encourage as much support and participation as possible.

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Hunters Down Care Home Projects

Residents at Hunters Down Care Home

made Christmas decorations for the

Town Hall Christmas tree out of twigs

and tinsel.

Local community groups including the Huntingdon

Grafham Water Lions Club and Tesco Community

Champions helped to enhance the communal garden

at Hunters Down Care Home to give residents a nice

area to sit and enjoy the sun over the summer.

Residents’ family members also joined in with the

fun, making it a great day for all! The garden area was

hugely improved and the residents planted sunflower

seeds as part of a community competition!

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Hinchingbrooke Hospital Gardens

WI Garden

Huntingdon In Bloom helped the Huntingdon and

Peterborough branch of the WI to install a trellis at the WI

Centre garden, for WI members to plant climbing plants. The

garden area can be admired from the Ring Road and is now

bursting with colour.

A brilliant group of volunteers meet at

Hinchingbrooke Hospital Gardens once a month to

rejuvenate the communal garden areas. Spaces have

been transformed from bare concrete courtyards to

colourful and enjoyable reflection spaces.

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Train Station

Huntingdon Railway Station had created a Memorial Flower Bed in memory of a taxi driver who had passed away. The Memorial Bed was in need of some TLC and the In Bloom team partnered up with Huntingdon Tesco Extra Community Champions to help. The team sponsored new plants and the addition of a trellis, which will house a plaque to give the Memorial Bed an identity.

Cromwell Academy Eco Warriors

Huntingdon In Bloom worked with Cromwell

Academy’s Eco Warriors to help transform their

planting patches. The In Bloom Team attended Eco

Warrior Meetings and Assemblies, along with

providing carrot, squash and courgette plants to set

in the designated patches. The team were quickly put

to work with a lot of weeding and digging required,

but the plants have now been planted and the Eco

Warrior team is going to work hard to keep their new

vegetable patch watered and maintained.

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Thongsley School

Easter Snowdrop Planting at Coneygear Park

Thongsley School has a Gardening Club, which

has helped with planting in the School’s new

vegetable patches and to build a mini-beast

hotel. More recently, the School has started to

develop a ‘forest’ area for storytelling and

adventure play. Huntingdon Town Council fell a

tree and donated extra logs for the area, which

the children helped to move!

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Press Coverage

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Funding and Sponsors

Huntingdon in Bloom would like to thank the following sponsors:

Huntingdon Tesco Extra Community Champions – seeds for Cromwell Academy, Community Orchard Tree

Urban and Civic – train station hanging baskets and hospital plants

Women’s Institue (WI) – thinking solider summer flower tubs

Cranbrook Plants – troughs and tubs at train station

Huntingdon Town Council – grant award

Dobbies Garden Centre Trees at the Coneygear Park Community Orchard were donated by Cos Productions, Huntingdon Grafham Water Lions Club, Hunters Down, Tesco Extra Huntingdon Community Space, Huntingdon Girlguiding, Huntingdon Town Council, Leonard Cheshire Disability, Luminus, Scope, Snack Shack, Wilkinsons and Young Carers Trust Cambridgeshire. Huntingdon in Bloom would like to thank the following volunteers:

Alyce Barber from Huntingdon Tesco Extra Community Space

Karen Aspinall from Huntingdon Tesco Extra Community Space

Susan Mulcahy from Huntingdon Town Council

Bernard Dable from the Huntingdon Grafham Water Lions Club

Keith Buckley from the Huntingdon Grafham Water Lions Club

Pearl Ewing from Hunters Down Care Home

Ann Colbert from the Hinchingbrooke Hospital Gardens Volunteer Group

Peter Jackson from the Hinchingbrooke Hospital Gardens Volunteer Group

Everyone else from the Hinchingbrooke Hospital Gardens Volunteer Group!

Sally Dalley from the WI and all of the other ladies who worked so hard on the flower bed

Ben Wilson from Cromwell Academy

Jo Payne from Thongsley School

Teresa Steer from Huntingdon Railway Station

Paul Robbins and the Cubs/Scouts

Luminus Neighbourhood Wardens

Esme Richardson at the Snack Shack

Roger Wood from the Huntingdonshire Beekeepers’ Association

Alison Gray from Hinchingbrooke Country Park and all of the wonderful Rangers and volunteers

And everyone else who helped to be a part of Huntingdon In Bloom 2015 – you have all been instrumental in the success of your projects!