Borders towns and villages are blooming marvellous!

Wednesday, September 10 2008

The keenly awaited results of this year’s Scottish Borders Council (SBC) Floral Gateway Competition were announced at an awards ceremony in Newtown St Boswells on Tuesday evening.

The competition, now in its eighth year, is split into four categories by population size; town, large village, small village and wee village. Each entry is assessed based on the quality of the floral displays, the standard of cleanliness in the town or village, and the community involvement from individuals, organisations and schools.

The ceremony was attended by competition entrants, judges and SBC Councillors and employees. Trophies and certificates of excellence were awarded by SBC Councillor Len Wyse, Executive Member for Environmental Services.

The results were as follows:

Town Class

1^st Peebles 2^nd Kelso 3^rd Galashiels

Large Village Class

1^st Melrose 2^nd Coldstream 3^rd West Linton

Small Village Class

1^st Broughton 2^nd Newcastleton 3^rd Yetholm

Wee Village Class

1^st Morebattle 2^nd Gavinton 3^rd Birgham

Jason Hedley, SBC’s Parks Manager, said: “We are delighted that this event is growing, with two more entrants than last year. The competition creates a great opportunity to get people involved in enhancing their local community, and the Borders has a lot to be proud of in that respect. We hope more Border towns and villages will be encouraged to take up the challenge for next year’s competition.”

Councillor Len Wyse added: “There are no losers in this competition as every town and village will benefit from the community involvement to make their surrounding areas even more attractive. I have been very impressed with the efforts put into this year’s competition and am keen to see even more towns and villages participate in 2009.”

Details of how to enter next year’s competition will be available on the Council website at www.scotborders.gov.uk or by calling 01896 661 770.

Reference: News-23919, Contact the Author