Gold and an extra accolade for village

The efforts of a group of volunteers in Horncliffe were rewarded with the Best New Entry accolade at this year’s Northumbria in Bloom Awards.
Floral display at The Crescent in Horncliffe.Floral display at The Crescent in Horncliffe.
Floral display at The Crescent in Horncliffe.

This added to the gold award in the Villages category.

The group started clearing and planting work in November 2019, so Horncliffe would have been entered in 2020 but the competition was cancelled last year due to Covid-19.

Members continued to look after the village by themselves and socially distanced from fellow members during last year and in the first few months of this year.

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Projects to be carried out for 2021 entry included renovating a boat that was abandoned on the banks of the Tweed so it could be the centrepiece of a floral display on a grassed area at The Crescent and creating a wildflower verge at the village entrance.

Steve Clark, a member of the Horncliffe in Bloom team, said: “It started when Kathryn Stones approached other residents in the village and this led to eight people forming the bloom group.

“We identified different places in the village that could be improved, either through specific projects or by putting hanging baskets/containers in place.

“The boat rescued from the banks of the Tweed has been christened ‘Bella Rona’ after the member of Horncliffe in Bloom who looks after the planting.

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“We were delighted to get a gold award and surprised to receive the Best New Entry award. We would like to thank residents in the village for supporting our fundraising and helping to clear weeds before the judging took place.”

Horncliffe Parish Council has congratulated the group on their success.