It’s the start of summer and tourist towns across our country are putting their best foot forward with public flower displays and City in Bloom competitions in a bid to attract tourists, help local businesses and foster civic pride.
This, however, is sadly not the case in Brighton and Hove where many of the council’s purpose-built flowerbeds – such as those at Patcham Roundabout and along Viaduct Road – currently lie neglected, bare and overrun with weeds and the council has allowed the annual City in Bloom competition to fold.
The contrast with other tourist towns in our county is striking – a look at the presentation of Eastbourne and Worthing right now puts Brighton and Hove to shame.
So how did our city get into such a poor state compared to other seaside towns and what can we do to turn it around?
The council’s loss of interest in City in Bloom started in 2011 when the Greens first came to power in Brighton and Hove.
In November 2011 the Green council, with the support of Labour, voted to fold the City in Bloom event and told the City in Bloom committee that it would not be granting them any further funding.
City in Bloom had previously been a joint council and community initiative with an annual budget of just £30,000.
The competition had been divided into different categories, including residents’ gardens, geographical areas, best streets, best shops and public houses, with an award ceremony at a seafront hotel each year.
The Conservative administration in the city from 2007 to 2011, immediately before the Greens, gave strong support to the event and considered that it held an important place in the civic calendar.
On being told the Green council’s decision, many members who had sat on the working group for City in Bloom as volunteers for years were disappointed by this change in direction from the council. They started a targeted campaign to challenge its decision.
City in Bloom petitioned the council, saying that the initiative was a cost-effective way of bolstering and improving civic pride, as is recorded in the minutes of the AGM held in 2012.
The City in Bloom committee itself overrode the council’s decision to end the event and, by working with the council in partnership, it was agreed that a budget of £25,000 would be signed over to the committee as a volunteer group as a one-off payment.
For eight years until 2019, utilising that one-off sum, the volunteer group ran the annual competitions throughout the city, arranging extra sponsorship and collating entrants, organising dates and times for three judges for each category and culminating in an annual prize-giving event.
These volunteers deserve great credit for making this work – including the chair Denise Taylor.
It showed what could be done with a small amount of money (£3,125 a year) and the support of sponsors – even against the headwind of disinterest and lack of support from our council.
But last year, when the committee decided to cease operation, the final Facebook post noted the challenges of having to leap the hurdles of council directions. They had to exclude less sustainable categories and embrace more ecologically sound practices for the competition.
Their post said: “As volunteers, we have found the running of City in Bloom to be complex and unsustainable.
“While we are saddened that we can’t continue, we are very pleased with our achievements over the seven years that we have been running as a voluntary organisation.
“Our sponsors have supported us and allowed us to award many community groups for their outstanding work and achievements.
“It was the decision of the committee (five members in total) to cease operation due to the extreme amount of time and energy that was needed and, having worked to update the process in which the competitions were run to exclude less sustainable categories and embrace more ecologically sound practices, the operation was deemed to have become unsustainable for the volunteers involved.”
This was noted in the Special General Meeting of Dissolution Minutes of Monday 24 February 2020.
Again, the council’s lack of support is a key factor. While sustainability is important, a more proactive council would have worked with City in Bloom to find a way to bring in sustainable displays alongside traditional colourful flowers for a time in the summer.
The Conservatives are calling for a return to City and Bloom as a way to restore civic pride and provide a boost post pandemic. You can sign the petition at www.tinyurl.com/cityinbloom.
The old Welcome to Brighton floral display sponsored by DonatelloWe think that the event is worthwhile as it boosts civic pride and helps our small business community which is an important part of the city’s economy.
We also think the absence of an event puts us at competitive disadvantage compared to other seaside towns in Sussex which embrace summer displays.
The volunteers of City in Bloom demonstrated how, with a small budget, it can be done. They have shown the way for the council, including how, with just a small amount of co-ordination and leadership from Brighton and Hove City Council, this event could return.
We know the council has the time and the money to make this happen.
When you consider the millions of pounds the council has wastes on failed policies such as insourcing housing repairs, home to school transport and an interim housing director costing £1,200 a day, surely we can find the small amount of money needed to run a good City in Bloom competition.
The council clearly has time on its hands to discuss this – Labour and the Greens are currently spending 76 per cent of their debating time at council meetings discussing national and international issues.
How about spending this time instead discussing how to bring back City in Bloom.
Come on Brighton and Hove City Council, let’s bring back City in Bloom and restore some civic pride to the city.
Councillor Carol Theobald represents Patcham on Brighton and Hove City Council and is the president of the Patcham Horticultural Society.
Someone should make Tory councillors aware of the austerity policies brought in by David Greensill Cameron in 2010. Which cut central funding for councils.
Maybe the disabled people who had their carers hours cut could tell them.
Notwithstanding the small cost and who pays for it, the Welcome display is very tacky and dated in the extreme and wouldn’t even be noticed by visitors or residents. Visitors to this pit don’t do floral things in general, but maybe residents would appreciate some kind of non-tacky planting at small cost.
Ah that would be another conservative councillor complaining about the affect of a conservative government then
Nice try Surly.
Meanwhile in the Socialist republic of Brighton they spend money on important items, cycle lanes and jet washing certain streets for PR.
Flowers in bloom are not watermelon Green enough for them.
You really couldn’t make it up. A ‘Green’ council – not supporting a ‘Green’ initiative.
Just imagine if it were a Conservative Council pulling out? I can hear the wailing.
This exactly – there would be a demonstration at the level and public outcry. Yes austerity has led to swathes of cuts but if posters actually read the article this was a cheap and cost effective scheme – no need to loose it.
Instead of petitioning the council, why not try and raise funds directly from the public through donation?
Come on Conservatives, I thought you were supposed to be all about personal responsibility?
Yes agree with you Ned.
Hey Greens, you want more cycle lanes, you raise the money from your student supporters.
Great idea Ned, well done.
But the Green’s mantra is not one of personal responsibility, but collective responsibility for the environment, so that doesn’t really make sense.
Bet you thought you’d made a really clever comment didn’t you, SFB?