W
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FLOWER POWER WINS GOLD
HAT-TRICK FOR OXTON SOCIETY
A Wirral village is celebrating after winning gold in
the North West in Bloom Awards for the third year
running.
Oxton, famous for its annual Secret Gardens event, was
crowned ‘Best Village in the Region’ for 2019 after wowing
judges with an array of 50 magnificent hanging baskets
that adorned the village centre.
It was the same award Oxton won last year and follows
a successful debut in the competition in 2017 when
it received gold in the Best Urban Community Class
category as well as the Best Newcomer Trophy for the
Secret Gardens.
North West in Bloom, held in association with the Royal
Horticultural Society, attracts hundreds of entries and
is judged throughout the summer. The hanging basket
displays - created by Burton’s Dovecote Nurseries - are
the brainchild of the Oxton Society, which undertakes
numerous projects to protect and preserve the historic
village.
Committee member John Booth, whose job it is to look
after the award-winning baskets, was invited to a special
awards ceremony at Wallasey Town Hall last Monday,
organised by Wirral Borough Council. He said: “Over
the past three years Oxton has been a front-runner in the
competition winning eight awards, including three gold,
which is fantastic.”
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Society chair Rhiannon Evans said: “We are absolutely
delighted to win again. These awards represent a huge
amount of commitment, local pride and hard work by so
many people.”
Since the Oxton Society launched the Secret Gardens in
2001, the event has raised more than £320,000 for local
charities and helped fund vital conservation work within
the village. Over the years more than 50,000 enthusiasts
have visited the gardens, most of which are hidden from
view behind sandstone walls built from locally-quarried
stone.
The society also has a blue plaque scheme which
commemorates the birthplaces of Oxton luminaries,
including Lt Col Philip Toosey, senior allied officer in the
notorious Japanese prison camp, portrayed by Sir Alec
Guinness, in Bridge on the River Kwai.
Also remembered are one-time sub postmistress, Edith
Smith, who became Britain’s first warranted female
police officer in 1915 - years before she could vote - and
modernist composer Cyril Scott.
Tree planting, a building design award scheme and
history tours all help further promote Oxton’s historic
urban conservation area and business centre as the 800-
plus member society grows from strength to strength in
membership and achievement.