Stoke Poges Memorial Gardens Win Green Flag for a Third Year

Stoke Poges Memorial Gardens has been awarded the prestigious Green Flag Awards for the third consecutive year. The granting of a Green Flag Heritage Site Award and the Green Flag Award for the Gardens, confirms it as among the very best public open spaces in the country.

The Green Flag Heritage Site award represents a huge effort by the Garden’s staff and contractors throughout the year, with valuable contributions from several community partners including Friends of Stoke Poges Memorial Gardens, garden holders, Oakbridge Day Centre Windsor and Thames Valley Probation (Berkshire Unpaid Work Team).
The Green Flag Award is a nationally recognised standard for the quality management of Parks, Open Spaces and Heritage Sites in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Any parks or public open space must meet a range of tough criteria in order to secure Green Flag status, including the highest standards of maintenance and cleanliness of facilities, buildings and signage. Environmentally sound maintenance practices, such as the minimal use of pesticides and recycling of green wastes, must be in evidence; the Memorial Gardens are self sufficient in compost and only buy in a minimal amount. There must also be active involvement with the community in the management of the site.
In January English Heritage re-graded the Gardens from a Grade II to a Grade I on its Register of Parks and Gardens of special historic interest in England, signifying the importance of the Gardens. It is the only garden of this period and style which survives unchanged, and still used for the purpose for which it was designed.

The Green Flag awards represent a huge effort by parks staff throughout the year, with valuable contributions from the council’s community partners. South Bucks District Councillor Woolveridge, Portfolio Holder for Health and Housing says, “I'm delighted that the Memorial Gardens has been awarded the coveted Green Flag Awards the national standard for parks and green spaces. Well done to the dedicated staff and all the organisations involved for winning this well-deserved award. We often get very positive comments from people about the gardens and to be recognised by a national body for this is really special."

Following approval from the Heritage Lottery Fund and English Heritage a grant of £500,000 was made in 2002 towards the cost of the Garden’s restoration. A further £300,000 was contributed by the Mobbs Memorial Trust with a further £200,000 from South Bucks District Council. The restoration was successfully completed in 2004.

The Green Flag Scheme sets the national standard for parks and green spaces. It is managed by the Civic Trust, a charity concerned with urban renaissance, on behalf of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Green Flag Advisory Board.

Any green space in England and Wales that is freely accessible to the public is eligible to enter for a Green Flag Award. Winning entries include town parks, nature reserves, country parks and cemeteries.

Sites are judged in May and June each year and the winners are announced in July. Winners fly their Green Flag until July the following year, when the site must be judged again.