REDDITCH Council has scooped a coveted Gold Award for its entry in this year’s Heart of England in Bloom competition.

The winners of the regional competition were announced during a ceremony in Wolverhampton on Thursday, September 15 when officers involved in this year’s campaign and portfolio holder for housing, local environment and health, Councillor Brandon Clayton, picked up the award.

This is the second year the council has entered the competition, improving on last year’s silver gilt award.

Coun Clayton said: “This is great news for Redditch. We have worked hard this year to improve our entry and clearly the judges recognised we had done a top job on making the borough a blooming beautiful place to live and work.

“I am delighted that Redditch has been given the recognition it deserves.”

Heart of England in Bloom judges visited Redditch at the end of July for a tour of the Town Centre, Forge Mill Needle Museum and other areas of the borough before deciding which award to give the borough.

The town’s entry received a huge amount of support from organisations and businesses from Redditch and further afield.

Among the areas the Heart of England judges visited were Arrow Valley Park, Where Next Association, Forge Mill Museum, Winyates Green Allotments and Southcrest Woods.

And there was another celebration in Redditch as Matchborough First School received a silver award for its In Bloom efforts from Heart of England judges.

Heart of England in Bloom is part of Britain in Bloom, which is one of Europe’s largest horticultural campaigns with more than 1,100 cities, towns and villages participating each year.