A popular park which attracted more than 250,000 visitors last year has picked up a prestigious national award marking it out as one of the best green spaces in the country.
Nowton Park in Bury St Edmunds will receive a Green Flag award when representatives from St Edmundsbury Borough Council, which runs the park, travel to Birmingham for a prize ceremony on 3 August.
The award, run by the Civic Trust, recognises high quality and excellent environmental standards. Each application for the prized status is assessed by judges who consider criteria such as how well the area serves its community before making a decision.
Nowton is the first St Edmundsbury-run park to win a Green Flag, and the high national standards it has met must be maintained in future years to retain the status.
Cllr Paul Farmer, Portfolio Holder for Arts and Culture at St Edmundsbury, said:
“Nowton Park has quite rightly become one of the top visitor attractions in the county and we are delighted its excellent facilities and the top quality countryside it boasts have been recognised in this way. I hope this award will persuade people who have never been to Nowton Park to do so, so that its wildlife, views and open spaces can be enjoyed by even more visitors.”
Nowton Park is made up of nearly 200 acres of countryside and was landscaped in Victorian style more than a century ago. Its facilities include an all-weather pitch, children’s play area, football pitches, picnic areas and nature walks.
ENDS
ISSUED BY LIZ HEARNSHAW, COMMUNICATIONS UNIT, ST EDMUNDSBURY BOROUGH COUNCIL. Tel 01284 757033. liz.hearnshaw@stedsbc.gov.uk
