South Somerset District Council’s Countryside team is celebrating after two local country parks win Green Flag awards for the fourth year running.

Yeovil Country Park and Ham Hill Country Park impressed the judges in a number of categories and were awarded the Green Flags for the fourth year running, this year amongst a record number of over 740 green spaces across the country. -

Both parks scored highly for their involvement with the community, as they host a range of - activities for people to get involved with - recently hosting ‘Willow Weaving in the Woods’ events to historical ‘Iron Age Warrior’ experiences.

Special recognition was given this year to Ham Hill Country Park for its efforts to preserve and protect its important historic features and natural surroundings - through conservation work and sessions on local heritage and history.

Yeovil Country Park - which won lottery funding in a public televised vote last year -was also praised for its work to protect endangered species, including the park’s native voles and otters.

Katy Menday, South Somerset District Council’s Countryside Manager says “We try to set an example by making our parks clean, safe, sustainable and environmentally excellent, so it’s fantastic to be given recognition for our work. Our countryside rangers have a great deal of support from our dedicated volunteers and the ‘Friends of Ham Hill’ group so we mustn’t forget to thank them for another year of hard work.

Other areas the parks were judged on included its work with Avon & Somerset Police to make the parks a safe and secure place, and the work of the Countryside Rangers for keeping them clean and well-maintained.

Cllr Sylvia Seal, South Somerset District Council’s Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Culture and Well-Being, says “The parks are a great way for people learn and appreciate their natural environment in an active way. South Somerset takes great pride and care of its beautiful open spaces as we know they are an asset to the area. We focus on enhancing these spaces and have made a real difference to people’s lives in doing so.”

“It is a tremendous achievement to have been awarded the prestigious Green Flag awards for both of our Country Parks for the fourth consecutive year.”

For more information about the country parks or for the countryside team’s events please visit www.southsomerset.gov.uk/countrysideevents

The flag will be awarded to the country parks by the end of July.

Thousands Come To Play In The Parks - August 2008

Snaking queues and packed marquees were the scene at Yeovil Country Park on Wednesday as National Play Day returned to the district, hosted by South Somerset District Council.

The event’s turn out has increased ten-fold since 2006, pleasing event organisers at the South Somerset Play Association.

Over 1,500 excited children, families and local nurseries flocked to the free event, taking advantage of activities ranging from rock climbing and den-building to circus skills and the district council’s double decker arts and crafts bus.

Robert Parr, South Somerset District Council’s Senior Play and Youth Officer was stunned after completing the head count on the day. He said, “All that could be seen, as far as the eye could see, were children having a fantastic time. We got through 350 packs of marshmallows in the barbeque area alone - and the hundreds of play packs almost ran out by the end of the day after so many people jumped on board our community bus.”

This year the national event - supported by the Children’s Play Council and designed to celebrate a child’s right to play - took the theme of ‘risky play’ to push children to their play limits. The theme was reflected in a number of activities, including a zoo area with tarantulas and a giant centipede, and a 24-foot (7.3 metre-high) climbing wall.

Mr Parr added, “Children were able to take part in a diverse range of play activities - but the circus show and demonstrations seemed to be one of the most popular sections, so that’s something we will aim to bring back to future play events.”

The South Somerset Play Association, which organised the event, is a partnership that includes Time Out Together, South Somerset District Council, the Early Years and Childcare Partnership and Somerset Children's Fund as well as volunteers from out of school clubs and holiday play schemes. Together they work to promote play opportunities for children across the district.

Jay Lewin, Deputy Chair of the Play Association, says, “National Play Day aims to highlight the importance of play in childhood, so many valuable life skills are learnt through play. It was great to see so many Mums and Dads taking an active part in the day and enjoying ”playing” with their children .The variety of environments that we set up this year was what made it such a success. If juggling, den building and climbing tired them out we provided a chill out tent to relax in and the chance to learn about the countryside. We thank everyone who helped make the day run smoothly.”

Cllr Sylvia Seal, South Somerset’s Portfolio Holder for Leisure, Culture and Well Being, says, “ We were happy to once again host this important event, which gave the community the chance to get together for the cause of play in childhood. We will continue to show our support for youth play activities but it’s not over yet as we have a whole summer of play days for people to enjoy.”

For more information on upcoming play day events visit www.southsomerset.gov.uk/playdays .