Community group hope blooming great work ill win national recognition
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
A BUCKIE volunteer group are hoping their 'blooming' great efforts will win national recognition.
Buckie's Roots, who began life looking after Cluny Square but have since expanded their remit, have entered Keep Scotland Beautiful's It's Your Neighbourhood initiative.
The scheme aims to support and encourage volunteer-led community groups which are cleaning and beautifying their neighbourhoods in a whole host of different ways. It also seeks to reward these groups through a series of certificates to acknowledge the good work being done on behalf of their communities.
Groups taking part in It's Your Neighbourhood must meet the charity's three pillars: Community participation; Environmental responsibility; Gardening achievement.
It is being run in partnership with the Royal Horticultural Society under their Britain in Bloom campaign.
Buckie's Roots have entered a large number of projects into the initiative, including their floral displays in Cluny Square.
The group's chairwoman Meg Jamieson said: "We thought that by entering this scheme it would give some recognition to the community for everything that's going on.
"It's not just us who're doing things.
"If we get a certificate it'll be something good coming to Buckie.
"Most of the what we've entered into It's Your Neighbourhood are things we're doing already. We've planted veg, which is something new for us, and we've also got bird boxes, made by Willie Adams, and bug hotels. We're hoping to get the Buckie primary schools involved."
Buckie's Roots have an impressive list of activities and achievements for each of the three pillars.
Under community participation, in addition to working with other groups, identifying health walks and asking the public to suggest improvements to the town, the group are asking people to knit or crochet flowers and animals to join the floral displays.
Litter picking, erecting dog waste signs, recycling/upcycling projects and the bird boxes and bug hotels all fall under the environmental category.
Working with local schools is one of the items which comes under the gardening achievement pillar, as do activities such as composting and growing vegetables. Putting in bee and insect-friendly plants is another item, as are installing new tubs in Cluny Square and creating a floral display near the Speyside Way feature recently installed by the group.
Find out more about the scheme at www.keepscotlandbeautiful.org
