Hale Village wins London in Bloom – Judges say it could be the envy of any major European city
Hale Village has won Gold and been announced as overall winner in the London in Bloom 2016 Awards, London Village category. Achieving 180 points out of a maximum of 200, the judges said Hale Village “could be the envy of any major European City.”
London in Bloom aims to make Greater London a greener capital and celebrates and recognises those that do.
The judges looked at overall impact, horticultural achievement, environmental responsibility and community participation and were impressed by the high standards in Hale Village in all the areas. They felt Hale Village was an excellent blueprint for anyone seeking a mixed community living in a high density scheme.
The Village was also applauded for its strict control of litter, anti-social behaviour and pleasant outside modern city cosmopolitan streetscape.
Geoff Hyde, Chairman of London in Bloom said, “The persistence, vision and focused investment of time, labour and money has meant that the site has excelled and become a worthy Gold Standard that others may now aspire towards. We were impressed at the effort and attention to detail creating a pleasant, thriving and personal atmosphere. Hale Village is a well-balanced integrated design that is hard to attain without the care of residents, the consistency of staff, an overall management masterplan and the combined effort of all to carry it through to this successful conclusion. Well done, it is well worth the Gold.”
Within the horticultural section, the judges praised Hale Village for the wide choice of interesting all year round plants and the use of herbs, fruit trees and bushes as well as the planning of the planting, creating landscaped walkways, a wildflower margin meadow and plant screening to reduce noise and dust.
It achieved nearly full marks in the community participation and environmental sections, impressing judges with the inclusion of local groups and stakeholders, close cooperation with the local diocese, as well as excellent Village facilities and combined heat and power unit and green roofs.
Commenting on the award, Michael Polledri, Chairman of Hale Village Ltd, said: This is a significant honour and we are delighted to receive this Award. It’s also a significant achievement and testament to the commitment and hard work of the Hale Village team, our partners, local groups, stakeholders and the people who live and work here. Having also just been granted the Green Flag Award and highly commended in the Placemaking Awards, we feel very proud of this great Village.”
Hale Village was among 1,686 parks and green spaces around the UK to be awarded the prestigious Green Flag Award by Keep Britain Tidy in July. The Flag is only awarded to spaces that have the highest possible standards, are beautifully maintained and have excellent facilities. It was highly commended in the Placemaking Awards, Mixed Use Brownfield Site category.