Henley win gold on return to Bloom contest

HENLEY has been awarded gold at the Thames and Chilterns in Bloom Awards.

It marked a triumphant return to the annual contest after taking a six-year break.

Goring was also recognised by the Royal Horticultural Society, winning its 10th gold in a row and was named top in the “small town” category.

An overall score of 85 per cent or higher is needed to achieve the gold standard.

The awards ceremony was held at the Oakwood Centre in Woodley on Thursday last week, which was attended by other entrants in the Thames and Chilterns region. Henley was praised for community involvement, horticultural displays, commitment to sustainability and biodiversity, environmental projects and heritage and cultural connections.

Town councillor Kellie Hinton, who chairs the Henley in Bloom committee, said: “It was an amazing result given we were entering after such a long break.

“We continued to do everything in Henley whether we entered the competition or not, community groups and charities come together to do all those things anyway.” Cllr Hinton said the team had some reservations about entering after the break and felt pressure to match previous successes.

Before taking a break, the town had won seven golds in the regional competition in eight years.

Cllr Hinton said: “We were unsure about entering because last time we entered it was a real high. We consistently achieved the gold standard so it’s fair to say that we were nervous.

“We wanted to make sure that we still maintain that standard and it was really great to enter the awards and have the judges agree with us that we have.” Henley in Bloom was championed by the town council’s former parks services manager, the late Gareth Bartle.

Mr Bartle played a key role in co-ordinating the entry and also served as a judge for Britain in Bloom. He died in 2018 at the age of 53.

Cllr Hinton said: “When we started entering in the national competition, Gareth was a huge part of that and was a huge part of Britain in Bloom.

He was even featured in a BBC programme about it that aired the night before he died. He was a significant part of the team and it was never really quite the same without him.”

Cllr Hinton said one of Mr Bartle’s ideas had been to feature the council’s adventure golf course in Henley’s Britain in Bloom entry, which happened this year.

She said: “Gareth’s legacy lives on. You can’t think of Henley in Bloom without thinking of Gareth and we hope he would be proud of us for maintaining that gold.”

Cllr Hinton said Henley in Bloom is a way for her to get “back to her roots” as a councillor, working to maintain green spaces, recreation areas and to promote civic pride.

“Henley in Bloom is more than just about flowers”, she said. “You’d be forgiven for thinking it’s all about hanging baskets but it’s about community. It’s civic pride. Henley in Bloom is important for bringing people together.

“We have lots of projects and things that happen here that really benefit the town and make Henley an attractive, welcoming and happy place to live. When people visit, we want to encourage them to spend their money and come here again.

“People love it here and we want to celebrate that and bring the community together in a whole heap of ways. That’s what the bloom movement is all about. Our community is so close and it’s all of this that makes Henley and Henley in Bloom so special.”

The council has also extended thanks to Active Security and Wilkins for their support of Bloom.

Goring had scored highly across all competition categories and was praised for involving the children of Goring Primary School.

Judges also highlighted the involvement of businesses, such as Indian restaurant Masoom’s, which installed hanging baskets and planters outside it.

Stephanie Bridle, who chairs the Goring in Bloom committee, said the organisers had put themselves under “a lot of pressure” to succeed for the 10th year in a row.

“It was a big relief,” she said. “It was a difficult one in terms of weather, to do all the things we do, so we were feeling rather nervous and were very relieved and happy to have won the gold.”

Mrs Bridle said she got involved in Bloom after helping to create hanging baskets for Goring Parish Council, to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012.

Impressed with the displays while passing through the town, a committee member for the Thames and Chilterns in Bloom Awards suggested the town take part in the competition.

Mrs Bridle, who is married to Ron, helped with the baskets alongside ithers and volunteered to help with Goring’s involvement.

“We got hooked,” she said. “The standard and the situation has changed over the years in terms of what the judges are looking for. You’ve got to be flexible and incorporate the right things for the community and the environment. We’ve gone peat free now, for example.

“Over the last 10 years, we’ve learned a lot. We were hoping to get to 10 and fortunately we did.”

In 2017, Ms Bridle and her fellow organisers were filmed showing judges of the competition around the village for a programme aired on the BBC.

In 2019, Goring was nominated for the national Britain in Bloom competition and won “best small town” for the first time.

Mrs Bridle said: “It has been really good and it’s a great thing to do. It makes the people of the village happy – we’re told we’re appreciated. They do love what we do and it encourages people to join in.

“The award ceremony was lovely this year. It was very well attended and very diverse. Everybody is interested in the same sort of things and is talking to each other. It’s quite a community within itself.”

Mrs Bridle said she was “really pleased” to see Henley back in the competition this year, adding “everyone works really hard there”.

She said: “I am very enthusiastic about Britain in Bloom. What they do makes a massive difference to communities and it’s now becoming very diverse, which is lovely.

“My interest really is in keeping this movement going. It’s wonderful for people’s mental health and they can do as much or as little as they want. I just love the joy it brings.”