Green Flag Award is the national standard for parks and green spaces in England and Wales. The scheme began in 1996 as a means of recognising and rewarding the best green spaces in the country. They also encourage others to achieve the same high environmental standards, by creating a benchmark of quality in public green spaces.
BTCV has joined Keep Britain Tidy and GreenSpace to work with Department for Communities and Local Government to encourage greater community involvement within green spaces across England.
All green spaces are different so each site is judged on its own merits and its suitability to its community. All of the awards recognise that community involvement, should be fundamental to the management of green space and the contribution it can make to its locality.
There are three awards within the scheme.
• Green Flag Award: Parks and Green Space managed by Local Authorities or private owners
• Green Flag Community Award: Parks and Green Space that are managed by community groups
• Green Heritage Site: Additional award open to Green Flag sites. It recognises the management and interpretation of a site with local or national historic importance.
Awards are given on an annual basis, the next application round opened on the 1st November 2011 and runs until the 31st January 2012. Apply here.
Green Flag Community Award
The Green Flag Community Award was introduced in 2003 specifically to recognise green spaces managed by voluntary and community groups. Our aim is that the awards act not only as a mechanism for reward, but an impetus for an ever increasing improvement in the quality of community run parks and green spaces.
Download the leaflet [600Kb pdf]
Find out more about the award and how BTCV’s Community Advocates can help your community get more involved with your local green space.
BTCV Community Zone
BTCV have launched the Community Zone a learning platform to support green space managers, individuals, communities and Green Flag judges to develop evidence and assess community involvement within green space. Users are able to access key learning, case studies and resources as well as promoting further support and training available.
