Six green spaces in Stafford Borough have again been rated as some of the best in the UK - marking a combined total of seventy years of success.

The roll of honour for the UK’s best parks and open spaces includes Victoria Park and Wildwood Park in Stafford claiming their twentieth and seventh ‘Green Flags’ in a row - with the town’s Tixall Road crematorium, and 160-year-old cemetery in Eccleshall Road, retaining their fifteenth and nineth awards respectively.

Stonefield Park in Stone is celebrating an eleventh ‘Green Flag’ success and the town’s cemetery gets awarded the honour for an eighth time.

The accreditation is the international quality mark for parks and green spaces - and the six Borough Council run sites were among nearly 2,400 UK winners this year.

Green Flag Award Manager, Paul Todd MBE, said: “Congratulations to everyone involved. Parks are essential public spaces that support our wellbeing, our communities and our economy.”  

“Stafford Borough Council has shown what can be achieved when parks are properly supported and managed. As we celebrate 30 years of the Green Flag Award, we want every community to have access to green spaces like this that are safe, welcoming and maintained to a high standard.”

The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of green spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

Joss Presland, Head of Operations at the Borough Council, said: “We know these parks and open spaces are popular with our residents and visitors - and it is always great to have independent feedback from judges representing a national organisation about how well maintained and managed they are.

“Thank you to all those who do excellent work on the ground and behind the scenes to ensure these green spaces are appreciated by the tens of thousands of people who visit them.”

He added: “Thanks also to the contribution from our community, especially the ‘Friends’ groups that support the work of the council at these sites. They are instrumental in us receiving the ‘Green Flags.’”

Any green space that is freely accessible to the public is eligible to enter the scheme, with the awards presented each year.  

More about borough parks from www.staffordbc.gov.uk/stafford-borough-parks 

Press Release No 6310