Green flag status hopes for Newport park

Newport councillor Peter Scott hopes a Green Flag Award for Victoria Park will keep the lovely little green space protected for many years to come.

The Green Flag Award scheme is the national benchmark standard for parks and green spaces.

Launched in 1996, the scheme is managed by Keep Britain Tidy with the aim of encouraging the provision of good quality public parks and green spaces that are managed in environmentally sustainable ways.

Awards are presented on an annual basis and winners must apply each year to renew their Green Flag status, with each site being judged on its merits and suitability to the community it serves by volunteer judges.

Winning parks are judged on how welcoming, clean, well maintained and safe they are - as well as their ability to meet criteria on sustainability, conservation, heritage and community involvement.

"We want to get Green Flag status for the park because it gives it better protection," Councillor Scott explained. "It becomes better maintained because the council will have to maintain it to a great standard - it'll be cleaner and safer.

"The award also opens it up to new communities, people might come from out of town to visit the park. It's got decent usage now, but it's about attracting more people to the park and to the town as a whole."

Councillor Scott said an application has been submitted to the organisers of the award and work is getting underway to spruce it up for judging.

As well as work to trim branches, improve signage and safety along the canal, there's also talk of improving lighting which Councillor Scott hopes will ensure the park is "attractive to everyone at all times of the day".