Weymouth wins GOLD for Britain in Bloom gardening competition
The Dorset town are over the blooming moon
Last updated 11th Oct 2021
Weymouth has received a Gold award in this year’s Britain in Bloom gardening competition – on their first ever entry.
The honour was announced at an awards ceremony in Weston-super-Mare on Thursday (7th October).
Weymouth also received recognition for Outstanding Contribution, Best Newcomer, and for their horticulture at Greenhill Gardens.
Its bid was managed by the Weymouth Business Improvement District, also known as We Are Weymouth.
The group’s Chief Operations Officer, Dawn Rondeau, told Greatest Hits Radio it was ‘absolutely incredible’ to win a Gold award, especially on their first try.
She added: ‘In fact many people commented that it’s unprecedented for anybody to get a Gold award on their first application, so we were really thrilled by that recognition.
‘We really felt that this was a big thank you to all the people who had already been doing the job’ of making , and we were just able to do some final painting, clearing up, making sure the bins were changed, weeding, and hanging up 311 baskets throughout the town, which I think made us win this Gold award.’
How was Weymouth judged?
Britain in Bloom has run annually since 1963, and has been organised by the Royal Horticultural Society for 20 years. The competition attracts hundreds of entrants each year.
The national gardening competition recognises communities of all shapes and sizes with a focus on three main criteria: horticultural excellence, environmental responsibility and community participation.
Preparation in the town was a collaboration between We Are Weymouth, Weymouth Town Council, Dorset Council and local volunteer teams.
It is the first time the Dorset seaside town has entered the national competition.
Judges visited Weymouth in July, just five weeks after the town announced their bid.
Starting at Greenhill Gardens, judges were escorted along the seafront, through the town and along St Alban Street, past the iconic St Mary’s Church, before heading over the Town Bridge with a short stop to see the bridge in operation followed by a walk along the harbour through to culmination in Hope Square.
Ms Rondeau told Greatest Hits Radio that the tight turnaround meant they had to ‘go with the flow.
‘We had a huge amount to do to work with various community groups to make sure the town looked amazing, but also hit all the criteria for the application.’
Icing on the cake
She added that she believes the Gold award will help attract more tourists to Weymouth.
‘The town was brilliant anyway. When we had our mentor come down to inspect, she said: “You’ve got the cake, you just need to put the icing on it,” which is a lovely way of looking at it.
‘What it does it creates a sense of pride for people who live and work here. It also creates an opportunity to mobilise teams to do that extra bit – things such as painting railings, weeding in areas that wouldn’t otherwise have been, and hanging all the baskets.’
Mayor of Weymouth Cllr Colin Huckle said: ‘This is great news and a fantastic team effort with so many people involved.
‘It is great for there to be an increased focus on Weymouth's gardens as, because we are a seaside town, a lot of focus is given to the beaches, so it is lovely that the gardens are getting some recognition.’
The team behind Weymouth’s bid say they hope to enter again in 2022 – but this time with a newly selected route through the town.