Best in Lancashire! Pendle gets 8/8 Green Flag awards for parks

Pendle’s parks are joint top in Lancashire and among the best in Britain – it’s official!

Park Friends and Pendle Council staff have been celebrating by raising the Green Flags  at Ball Grove today, Friday 5 August, next to the popular Lakeside Café.

Councillor Nadeem Ahmed who leads on parks announced:

“It’s fantastic that we’ve been recognised for our top quality parks, meeting the high standards demanded by Tidy Britain’s Green Flag Award scheme.

 “We entered eight parks for the prestigious Green Flag awards and eight out of eight parks retained their awards,” he explained.

“They are a huge asset for Pendle as people of all ages can enjoy them for free and I urge people to come and explore our parks,” he said.

Details on each park including free facilities such as tennis and bowling, trails, play areas and picnic areas are on www.pendle.gov.uk/parks

Pendle and Hyndburn were the only two areas in Lancashire to get eight green flag awards, with neighbouring Burnley getting five, Preston four and Lancaster two.

The eight parks which have retained their Green Flag status for being well managed and maintained and with good facilities are:
• Marsden, Victoria and Walverden Parks in Nelson
• Alkincoats and Ball Grove Parks in Colne
• Heyhead Park in Brierfield
• Valley Gardens in Barnoldswick.

 “The awards are a great tribute to our hard-working staff, dedicated Park Friends and volunteers who make a big difference,” said Nadeem.

“The parks are great but they’re not perfect and there’s always lots to do and if anyone would like to volunteer to help in our parks please get in touch with Park staff on (01282) 661600,” he said.

International Green Flag Award scheme manager Paul Todd said:

“We are delighted to be celebrating a record-breaking year for the Green Flag Award scheme.

2016 is the 20th year of the Green Flag Awards and 1,600 parks are flying the Green Flag  following this summer’s announcement of the list of Britain’s best parks.