Southend parks and spaces honoured with Green Flag Awards

The Green Flag Awards are accolades given to well-maintained parks and green spaces, administered by the Government.

Tropical - Chalkwell Park made the list (Image: Southend Council)

Southend received the third highest number of these awards in the East of England, following Watford Borough Council and Chelmsford City Council.

Lydia Hyde, Labour cabinet member for climate, environment, and waste, said: “I am incredibly proud of our parks team for their passion, hard work, and dedication in ensuring our city continues to wave its nine Green Flags year after year.

Fountain - Priory Park (Image: Southend Council)

“This achievement is especially poignant as two key team members are still recovering at home following a road collision earlier this year.

“The community’s support has been fantastic, and everyone has come together to maintain our beautiful parks.

“Our city offers a wonderful selection of parks and open spaces for residents and visitors to enjoy.

Scenic - Belfairs Nature Reserve (Image: Clifford Leech)

“The Green Flag Awards highlight the quality of these spaces, which attract millions of visitors to Southend each year.”

These awards will now be proudly displayed in nine of Southend’s finest green spaces.

These include Belfairs Park and Nature Reserve, Chalkwell Park, Leigh Library Gardens, Priory Park Southend, Shoebury Common North, Shoebury Park, Southchurch Hall Gardens, Southchurch Park, and Sutton Road Cemetery and Southend Crematorium.

Winner - Southchurch Park (Image: Carla Doodes)

Outside of the council’s achievement, Garon Park also secured a Green Flag Award while Trust Links, based in Shoebury and Westcliff, received two Green Flag Community Awards.

A spokesman for the council added: “The council is grateful to community groups and visitors for their support in helping maintain Southend’s parks by disposing of litter properly and caring for park facilities and equipment. The council is also grateful to partners such as Essex Wildlife Trust who we work closely with at Belfairs Park and Nature Reserve and other open spaces across the city.”

Green Flag - Southend Crematorium (Image: Helen L Wakeham)

The Green Flag Awards are orchestrated by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, under licence from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.