Leicestershire: Bradgate Park wins Green Heritage status

A Leicestershire park has been recognised for the management and conservation of its historic and landscape features with an award.

Bradgate Park has been granted Green Heritage status, ranking it alongside Nottingham's Woolaton Park and Derby Arboretum.

The 830-acre (336-hectare) park has also secured a Green Flag award for the second consecutive year.

The award is the international quality mark for parks and green spaces.

The medieval deer park, the childhood home of Lady Jane Grey, was donated to the people of Leicestershire in the 1920s by landowner Charles Bennion to be run in trust for them.

It is one of 135 Green Heritage sites in the UK, and joins Leicestershire County Council-run attractions Beacon Hill Country Park, near Loughborough; Market Bosworth Country Park; Snibston Colliery Park and Watermead Country Park (North), near Syston, on the Green Flag list.

James Dymond, director of Bradgate Park Trust, said: "Bradgate is one of Leicestershire's most popular parks and the accolades received stand as a testament to the hard work and dedication of the teams to bring history to life and make the park a green space that everyone can enjoy.

"Our teams have been working extremely hard in the past year to go greener, cleaner, bigger and better. It's brilliant to have our unique park recognised and establishing more of a national presence."

Paul Todd, accreditation manager for environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, which administers the award schemes, said: "Bradgate Park is a vital green space for the community in Leicester and Leicestershire, 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."

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