A garden in Silloth has won a special award for encouraging pollinators.

The Heritage Rose and Bee Garden on Silloth Green has won a Bees Needs Award.

The award is presented to Green Flag winning parks and green spaces in England that have made improvements to encourage pollinators.

Silloth Green has been awarded a Green Flag for four years in a row.

Vivian Russell, who created the garden, will be attending a ceremony at Kew Gardens in London tonight Tuesday (NO V 8) on behalf of Silloth.

Tony Markley, Mayor of Silloth said: “This is a fantastic achievement for Silloth and is a continuation of the achievements of recent years. None of this would have been possible without teamwork.

“Vivian has led the project, with support from the town council’s grounds maintenance team and other volunteers.

“The Bee Hotel was a novel idea for a seaside town and replicates the Pagoda up on the hill which overlooks the sea.

“We always welcome visitors to the town but the Bee Hotel provides visitors of the insect variety with a place to stay too.”

The sunken Heritage Rose Garden was created in 1953 to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. It lies close to the sea, protected for the most part by a shelter belt of rhododendron and holly.

The garden was renovated in 2012, but by mid-2014 many of the roses were failing due to poor drainage caused by compaction in the underlying clay base.

Rectifying this would still have left the problem of rose sickness, requiring the replacement of tons of earth. This led to a complete rethink of the garden.

Silloth Town Council decided to bring the garden into the 21st century and address concerns over the welfare of bees, butterflies and other pollinating insects, while at the same time preserving the site's history.

The garden has been entirely replanted with bee and butterfly friendly plants. In the middle of the garden is the Bee Hotel, a replica of the Victorian Pagoda at the top of the wooded hill above the Splash Pool.

As the new Bee Garden began to flourish and the bees, bugs and butterflies began to arrive, word spread and local people began to develop interest.

Bill Jefferson, chair of the parks committee and chair of Silloth in Bloom community team, said: “I am delighted Vivian’s major creation of the Silloth Bee Garden has received national specialist success, coming on top of the Royal Horticultural Society tributes from this year’s judges at Cumbria and national level.

“It has been an outstanding personal achievement for all her hard work and professional dedication.

"Habitat loss is a key factor affecting pollinator population and this award is looking to increase awareness and contribute to improved pollinator-friendly environments."