Port Sunlight receives a coveted Green Flag Award for the sixth consecutive year

Port Sunlight is celebrating after receiving a Green Flag Award in recognition of its well-kept parks and gardens. Receiving the award for the sixth consecutive year, Port Sunlight keeps its place on the coveted list of parks and green spaces recognised as the best in the United Kingdom.

The village has also achieved the Green Heritage Site Accreditation, supported by Historic England, for the management of its historic features.

Port Sunlight is known for being built by William Lever to provide housing for ‘Sunlight Soap’ factory workers in 1888. It is arguably the finest surviving example of early urban planning in the UK, and has remained largely intact since its foundation. Its Arts and Crafts-style houses and picturesque parks and gardens make the village a popular place to live and visit.

Today, Port Sunlight Village Trust is an independent charity responsible for preserving the village, which includes employing a team of gardeners to look after all of its public green spaces as well as the front gardens of around 900 properties.

To mark the award-win, Port Sunlight Village Trust is inviting both the community and visitors to a special gathering and witness the raising of the Green Flag Award on Friday 21 July at 9.30am, as well as take part in themed family activities on the village’s Museum Green including a chance to meet the gardeners. For more information, go to www.portsunlightvillage.com/whats-on

Liam English, Landscape Manager at Port Sunlight Village Trust, said: “To be recognised once again by the Green Flag Award Scheme is a real honour for our gardeners, who take immense pride in the work we do to look after the village’s green spaces. A simple ‘thank you’ from a resident or visitor always brightens up our day, so to receive this award is really special to us.

“From planting over 50,000 bedding flowers each year and cutting 21.5 miles of grass edges to caring for over 4,000 roses, looking after Port Sunlight’s green spaces is a big yet extremely rewarding job.”

Paul Harris, Port Sunlight Village Trust’s Chief Executive, said: “The news that Port Sunlight has achieved the accreditation – the international quality mark for parks and green spaces – is testament to the dedication of our Landscape team that care for the village’s parks and gardens for everyone to enjoy. I would like to thank them for their hard work, as well as the local community for their continued support.”

Keep Britain Tidy’s Green Flag Award Scheme Manager Paul Todd MBE said: “I would like to congratulate everyone involved at Port Sunlight Village Trust in achieving a Green Flag Award.

“Port Sunlight’s parks and public gardens are vital spaces for the local community, bringing people together and providing opportunities to lead healthy lifestyles. The staff and volunteers do so much to ensure that it maintains the high standards of the Green Flag Award and everyone involved should feel extremely proud of their achievement.”

The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of green spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

A full list of Green Flag Award-winning parks and green spaces is available here.