Britain in Bloom

2007 logo of Britain in Bloom

Britain in Bloom is a horticultural competition in the United Kingdom. It was first held in 1963, initiated by the British Tourist Board based on the example set by Fleurissement de France.^[1] It has been organised by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) since 2002 and is currently sponsored by Shredded Wheat.

The competition is entered by settlements: towns, villages and cities. Different categories exist for various sizes of settlements, and finalists are selected from the winners of regional competitions. Since 2002, the awards have been based on the Royal Horticultural Society's medal standards of Gold, Silver Gilt, Silver and Bronze;^[2] the winner is the settlement judged to have most successfully met the rigorous judging criteria. The first stage is judged in around June/July; the second stage in August. Winners are announced in about September/October. The competition covers the UK, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.

Floral displays play an important part in the contest, but the "Bloom" title is now, perhaps, misleading: in recent years the competition has increasingly assessed how all sectors of the local community are managing their local environment.

History

The history of the 'Bloom', as it is colloquially referred to^[3], began in 1963 when Roy Hay MBE, a horticultural journalist, went on holiday to France during the Fleurissement de France and was enthralled by seeing the country "filled to overflowing with flowers, shrubs and trees all in full bloom". His enquiries revealed that President de Gaulle had given orders to brighten up the country and the French Tourist Authority had set up the Fleurissement de France in 1959 (now called Concours des villes et villages fleuris). Hay was so impressed that he approached the British Tourist Authority ("BTA"), and he and Len Lickorish, then Director General of the BTA, set up a committee to run a British version, "Britain in Bloom". It was piloted by the British Tourist Authority in 1963 (Lewisham being part of that pilot^[4]), and went national in 1964.

Many organisations were invited to help, including: the Automobile Association; London Tourist Board; National Farmers' Union; London Parks; Institute of Parks and Recreation Administration; National Association of Rural Communities; Royal Horticultural Society; Royal Automobile Club; The Tourist Boards of England, Scotland and Wales; The National Federation of Women's Institutes; Civic Trust; Keep Britain Tidy Group; the Flowers and Plants Council; The Horticultural Trades Association; The British Hotels and Restaurants Association; The Society of Town Clerks; Townswomen's Guild and British Airways. Despite this impressive list, Roy Hay later reflected that the initial reaction of the horticultural trade and local authorities was lukewarm.^[3]

Nevertheless, regional committees were quickly formed, and in 1964 Bath became the first national winner. From 1964 to 1969 inclusive there was an overall national winner. From 1970, however, the competition was divided up into a range of categories, because of the difficulty of comparing settlements of different sizes fairly.^[3]

The British Tourist Authority managed the competition until 1983 when the Government Department sponsoring the BTA felt that it should relinquish the responsibility. The Tidy Britain Group (the group responsible for the Keep Britain Tidy campaign, now known as EnCams) took over; it already had a long association with the competition. To mark the changeover, 1983 was celebrated as "Beautiful Britain in Bloom Year".^[3] Sir Lawrie Barratt of Barratt Developments expressed his support to the Tidy Britain Group for the competition and provided sponsorship until 1989.

More categories and awards were added, in part reflecting a greater range of settlements, but also to recognise other elements of horticulture, including landscaping, and also to recognise the strenuous efforts to beautify the urban areas of the larger cities. McDonalds began sponsoring the competition from 1990, which led to focus on littering behaviour and the implementation of a Children's Painting Competition Calendar.^[3] In 2001 the event was organised jointly by EnCams and the Royal Horticultural Society and from November 2001 the RHS took full control as the organising body of Britain in Bloom.^[5]

Structure

An emblem on the side of an Arriva bus, celebrating Horsham's 2007 victory in the Small City/Large Town category

The competition currently has ten entry categories, most of which are determined by population size. Within each category, similarly sized communities compete across a spectrum of horticultural endeavour, including plantsmanship and landscaping, and in dealing with issues of litter, graffiti and vandalism.^[5]

• Category A
  • Small Village
  • Village
  • Large Village
• Category B
  • Small Town
  • Town
  • Large Town/Small City
• Category C
  • Large Town/Small City
  • City
  • Large City
• Category D
  • Urban Community
  • Urban Regeneration
• Category E
  • Small Coastal
  • Large Coastal

Judging

Britain in Bloom encompasses 12 English regions, as well as Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey. Because of the area that is covered, judging usually takes place over two years in two stages.

1. Local competition: Entries are first submitted by voluntary local 'Bloom' Committees, depending upon the area, to Local Authorities, Town or Parish Councils. The local volunteers are colloquially known as "bloomers"^[7]. As judging approaches, the bloomers – who have steered their community's bid – coax and cajole local residents into last-minute tidy-ups, hedge-trims and litter-picks. Judging takes place in June/July, and winners are announced during local presentations between August and November.
2. UK-wide: After the judging of the first stage (the Local competitions), Committees representing their nation/region select entrants for the second UK-wide stage. To ensure that effort is sustained over time, this second stage of judging takes place in August the year after they qualify. Winners of the UK judging are announced at a prestigious ceremony in September/October.^[8]

National winners

This table may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this table if you can. (July 2009)

Details to 1990 from Graham Ashworth CBE, Britain in Bloom, The Tidy Britain Group (Wigan:1991)^[9]

Subsequent competitions

From the winners and finalists of Britain in Bloom, entries are picked to represent Britain in international competitions such as the Entente Florale.^[13]

Discretionary awards

(Definition Source)

• The Britain in Bloom Floral Award / The Asmer Trophy: for the production of the best floral displays (won by Bath on 3 occasions - 1987, 1992, 2001). Originally the bedding plants had to have been raised from seed by a parks department.
• The Permanent Landscaping Award / Beautiful Britain Award^{(from 1983)}/Landscape Development Trophy^{(to 1983)}: for the highest quality new and/or extensive landscaping
• The Bob Hare Award: presented for outstanding contribution to their community's Britain in Bloom effort in any sector
• Commercial Award / Gordon Ford Trophy: for offering outstanding support to the an entry into the competition (won by Bath on 7 occasions - 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1981). Originally presented by Gordon Ford.
• Tidy Britain Group Trophy / Keep Britain Tidy Trophy / The Keep Britain Tidy Award: to the finalist appearing to contribute most to the aims of the Tidy Britain Group
• Tourism Award: presented to the community who did most to give the visitor a pleasing view and a warm welcome
• Best Public Park Award: awarded to the park with the highest standard of maintenance well managed facilities and beautiful horticulture (won by Bath in 2003)
• The Going for Green Trophy: presented in the name of one of Britain's leading environmental campaign, and given to the finalist that has displayed a sound grasp of green issues
• Individual Citations: individuals are sometimes cited for their individual contributions to the year's Britain in Bloom
• The Moran Memorial Award: for outstanding contribution by an individual to Britain in Bloom
• Best Inner City / Barratt Inner City Trophy: for the best effort in inner city areas

Regions

The regions of the UK and Crown dependencies used in the competition are (with reference to ceremonial counties and government office regions)

Source of civic pride

Guildford welcome sign displaying Britain in Bloom credentials

Winning a category within Britain in Bloom at a national or even regional level has proved to be a source of considerable civic pride for the towns, cities and villages involved. Many of the authorities of the winning locations do advertise their achievements on signs within, or more predominantly on the outskirts of their settlement. One journalist stated that "Since Britain In Bloom began in 1963 … nothing has pleased town councillors more than to hammer up a sign at the outskirts of their kingdom trumpeting superiority to incoming visitors… Few events provide a sterner test of civic pride."^[7] Examples include Garstang where the sign that leads to the high street at the heart of the town says, above the name "Garstang", Britain In Bloom Small Town – Gold Award Winners 2002, 2005, and "Invitation Finalists to Champion of Champions 2006"^[7], or Guildford, which advertises its past triumph in the Town category on its welcome signs.

Further reading

• Graham Ashworth CBE, Britain in Bloom, The Tidy Britain Group (Wigan:1991)
• Bloom Review archive (from Spring 2005 – now) in pdf format

References and notes

1. ^ Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea - About In Bloom
2. ^ The Garden, (Journal of The Royal Horticultural Society), October 2002, p752)
3. ^ ^{a b c d e} Graham Ashworth CBE, Britain in Bloom, pages 7 & 8, The Tidy Britain Group (Wigan:1991)
4. ^ Lewisham in Bloom heroes pick up awards
5. ^ ^{a b} Woolton in Bloom - Information on Britain in Bloom
6. ^ The Garden, (Journal of The Royal Horticultural Society), April 2003, p233)
7. ^ ^{a b c} Wednesday, 8 August 2007, Flower power: The Britain in Bloom phenomenon, The Independent
8. ^ RHS Britain in Bloom
9. ^ Graham Ashworth CBE, Britain in Bloom, The Tidy Britain Group (Wigan:1991)
10. ^ From Bloom Review, Issue 8, Spring 2006: Champion of Champions - This is a new category within the Britain in Bloom UK Finals where selected communities, of all population sizes, who have demonstrated sustained high standards in the Bloom campaign, are invited to compete for the title of ‘Champion of Champions’. These entries are judged against the Bloom criteria relevant to their population, and then compared to determine the overall winner.
11. ^ RHS Britain in Bloom Awards Winners 2008
12. ^ RHS Britain in Bloom Awards Winners 2007
13. ^ The Entente Florale itself has taken different forms, such as the "ENTENTE FLORALE – Ten Nations Competition" and the "ENTENTE FLORALE – Britain - France - Belgium Competition"

External links

• Britain in Bloom
• Winners 2007 Yorkshire in Bloom

Other language Wikipedias

• Concours des villes et villages fleuris - French National Competition article
• Entente Florale Deutschland - German National Competition article