Three South Ribble parks scoop Green Flag awards

The flags are flying high in South Ribble, with today’s news that three council parks have been ranked among the best in the UK.

The borough has scooped three prestigious Green Flag Awards – the gold standard for parks and open spaces – for Worden Park in Leyland, Longton Brickcroft Nature Reserve, and Hurst Grange Park in Penwortham.

To be considered for a Green Flag, a park must “boast the highest possible environmental standards, be beautifully maintained, and have excellent visitor facilities.”

For Worden Park, the success represents its continuing high standards, having now won a Green Flag every single year (22 times) since the scheme began. It is the only park north of London to claim this feat.

Speaking about Worden Park, the judges commented: “We are impressed with staff knowledge and dedication to their roles. The attention to detail shows that a lot of care and thought goes into the projects that are implemented. The park is going from strength to strength and the investment that has been made to date has made a vast difference to the asset and visitor experience.”

Worden Park gets around 300,000 visitors a year and appeals to people both locally and further afield, with its huge adventure playground, miniature train rides, hedge maze, walled gardens and formal gardens.

Longton Brickcroft is also very popular – its visitor centre alone attracts 30,000 people through its door annually.

And in this year’s Green Flag Award judging process, Longton Brickcroft scored very highly – achieving 80+, the highest score available.

Of the nature reserve, judges said: “There is very good community involvement with all ages being active in the upkeep of the area. It is inviting, well promoted, and attracts visitors from local areas and further afield.”

They added: “There is sound management in place, with good local partnerships.”

Councillor Caroline Moon, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment and Community Safety at South Ribble Borough Council, said: “This is a huge achievement for our borough. Of course, this national recognition (of how amazing our parks truly are) is no surprise to us in South Ribble: we all know what fantastic, big, green open spaces they are – all maintained to an exceedingly high level.

“I know our officers work tirelessly to enhance and promote the parks for the people of South Ribble and beyond – so I want to thank them for continually performing to their own exceptional standards, keeping the parks clean, tidy and looking fabulous all year round.

“We also really value the support of our Friends Groups who work voluntarily to make sure the parks look great 365 days a year.”

Click here to find out more about the Friends Groups where you can also register your details to get involved.