Peasedown St John has won Silver in the prestigious South West in Bloom competition. Beating competitors from across the region, covering Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bath and Bristol, judges were impressed, not only by the floral displays, but by the huge amount of voluntary activism going on in the community, too.

The village’s entry into the Pennant Category was put together and led by Independent B&NES Councillors, Karen Walker and Sarah Bevan. Cllr Walker said: “Sarah and I are extremely grateful to all the volunteers, community groups and businesses that worked with us to achieve this. We wanted to show off Peasedown St John at its best – which we certainly did!

“We are particularly grateful to the Residents’ Association, Nathan Hartley, Parish Council, Lions Club, the Party in the Park team and Curo for the work they put into Peasedown in Bloom 2017.”

The Silver Award was presented to the councillors and local volunteers last Wednesday night at a special event at St John’s Community Room, by South West in Bloom Secretary, Denise James. The village also won ‘Best New Entry’, as it was Peasedown St John’s first-ever attempt at taking part in the competition.

Cllr Bevan added: “In Bloom allowed us to be as creative as we wanted to be.

As well as the traditional side of the competition, such as well-kept gardens and colourful flower beds, we also demonstrated our success with community clean-ups, fixing broken fencing, and repairing and refurbishing dirty and broken street signs.

“The judges were extremely impressed with what they saw during their two-hour tour of the community in July. They said they had seen some ‘superb scenes’, and were overwhelmed with the enthusiasm of local volunteers.”

Judges visited twelve local sites for viewing. They were: Nathan Wood, Peasedown Cricket and Croquet Clubs, Circle Hospital, Ecewiche Green, Orchard Way, the World War I Orchard, Beacon Field, Dunkerton Hill roundabout, The Prince of Wales Inn, Ashgrove Cemetery, Eckweek Gardens, World War I Dwarf Magnolias, Wellow Lane Henge, and The Green.

Peasedown In Bloom was sponsored by Peasedown Party in the Park through the 2017 Grant Fund. South West in Bloom is part of Britain in Bloom, which is organised by the Royal Horticultural Society.