Sites across the UK prepare to raise the prestigious Green Flag Award after reaching international quality standard for parks and green spaces.
A record number of parks and green spaces across the UK have reached the high standards required to receive a coveted Green Flag Award in 2024.
A total of 2,227 parks and green spaces have achieved the Green Flag Award - the international quality mark for parks and green spaces – with successful submissions from local authorities and other land managers across the country for a range of sites, from world-famous city parks to community gardens.
Four parks that received their first Green Flag Award when the scheme was launched 28 years ago have flown it every year since. They are:
- Cockington Country Park – Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust
- Worden Park – South Ribble Borough Council
- Queen’s Park – City of London
- Highgate Wood – City of London
Photo: Mayfield Park Manchester by Richard Bloom
They are joined by parks and green spaces as diverse as:
- Kings Cross Estate, London - Nurture Landscapes Ltd
- Mayfield Park, Manchester - Mayfield Development Partnership
- Flagstaff Park, Berwick – Northumberland County Council
- Headingley Campus, Leeds – Leeds Beckett University
- Marble Hill Park – English Heritage
In addition, 130 of the winners have received a Green Heritage Site Accreditation for the management of historic features, supported in England by Historic England.
These include:
- Wyndham Park, Grantham – South Kesteven District Council
- Coombe Abbey Country Park, Coventry – Coventry City Council
- Lancaster Canal Canal & River Trust
To achieve Green Heritage Site Accreditation, winners have to understand and take action to conserve the heritage value of their site. They also need to help people to understand and enjoy its unique history, from nationally important parks to local green spaces that help tell the story of places and communities.
Several quality sites managed by voluntary and community groups were given a Green Flag Community Award including:
- Simmons Park, Okehampton – Simmons Park Trustees and Okehampton Town Council
- Lions of the Great War, Smethwick - Guru Nanak Gurdwara
- Riverside Miniature Railway, St Neots – Riverside Miniature Railway Club
Parks are a vitally important part of this country’s green infrastructure, providing opportunities to improve physical and mental health even in the most built-up urban environments. However, research by Leeds University has shown that women are currently less likely to use our parks and green spaces due to a range of factors including safety fears.
That’s why it’s important that parks are managed to the Green Flag Award standard, which rewards those sites that meet the needs of the community, are well maintained, safe and provide people with the opportunity to lead healthy lifestyles.
Congratulating this year’s winners, Keep Britain Tidy Chief Executive, Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, said: “Prioritising parks and green spaces is vital for our future, so we are delighted to see that 2,227 sites have met the standards required for a Green Flag Award, reflecting the tireless work of those tasked with looking after these important national assets.
“We know beyond doubt that our local environment contributes to the wellbeing of individuals and communities, with our parks and green spaces recognised as areas where people can come together and be active. Research shows that time spent in green spaces can positively affect mental and physical health, quality of life and a sense of wellbeing.
“We believe the standards expected in the Green Flag Award should be a minimum for every park, and it is our ambition that by 2030 we increase the number of sites achieving Green Flag Award status even further so that people across the world, wherever they live, can access and enjoy safe, high-quality green space.”
Erika Diaz Petersen, Historic England’s Principal National Landscape Adviser, said: “Historic parks, gardens, canals and other green heritage sites are at the heart of the network of public open spaces that are critical to our health and wellbeing, nature and the environment. The Green Flag Awards recognise the fantastic effort made and high standards achieved by parks professionals, community groups, volunteers and others across the country who look after these important places.
“At Historic England we are very pleased to support Green Heritage Site Accreditation in England, celebrating the achievements of Green Flag Award winners who care for, share and celebrate the heritage of their sites.”
The Green Flag Award scheme is managed by Keep Britain Tidy in partnership with Keep Wales Tidy, Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful and Keep Scotland Beautiful under licence from the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, setting the benchmark standard for the management of recreational outdoor spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.
