£20,000 project for Whalley's Britain in Bloom entry (From Lancashire Telegraph)

£20,000 project for Whalley's Britain in Bloom entry

3:32pm Thursday 26th January 2012 in News By Catherine Pye, Reporter

COMMUNITY EFFORT Whalley centre will be in full bloom

A £20,000 project has been launched to transform Whalley into a floral spectacle.

Teams of volunteers are gearing up to install “wow factor” hanging baskets and planters across the village, and to erect a new three fishes stainless steel sculpture.

The efforts are part of Whalley’s first-ever entry in the Royal Horticultural Society’s Britain in Bloom, set to be captured on BBC’s Gardener’s World programme.

Project leader Carole Ann Powers said a series of fundraisers, including raffles and competitions, had already secured £6,000, but a big push was needed for donations in the next few months.

She said: “There are a lot of areas looking a bit tatty, and a lot of adhoc areas that this will transform.

“It’s a massive deal involving a lot of residents and organisations, and it will help pull the community together.

“There will be input from the police, schools, and groups with disabilities. It is also a healthy thing to get involved in and will, hopefully, have long-lasting effects.”

Areas to benefit from the work are Vale House Gard- ens, King Street, the Adult Learning Centre, in Station Road, Calder Vale near the weir, village entrances and exits, Whalley train station, the QE2 playing fields, and back streets.

Multi-award-winning landscape gardener John Everiss has been recruited to design the displays, with planting due to start soon.

The aim is to update displays until the end of judging in July, with seasonal offerings reflecting the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, and the Olympic Games.

Carole Ann said: “Down King Street there will be loads of oranges, pale lemons, acid greens, and creams. It will be really unusual and will definitely have the wow factor.

"There will also be lots of reds, whites and blues, and purples, blues and whites.”

A judge will be given a 90-minute tour of the village in July, and be presented with a portfolio of work done.

A decision on the siting of the £5,000 centrepiece sculpture will be made on February 16 by Whalley Parish Council.

For more information, visit: www.visitwhalley.co. uk/BritaininBloom.aspx