THREE countryside sites in Worcestershire have been awarded international awards for being well-managed green spaces.

Worcestershire County Council now has three countryside sites celebrating Green Flag Award success today.

Worcester Woods Country Park, Waseley Hills Country Park, and St Wulstan’s Local Nature Reserve have all received the international quality mark for parks and greenspaces.

The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of green spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

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Councillor Marcus Hart, cabinet member with responsibility for communities at Worcestershire County Council said, “I am thrilled to hear that three of our countryside sites have once again earned Green Flag Awards.

"We are really proud of our countryside sites, they are a huge part of what makes our county so special for residents and visitors alike.

"The real success story behind the awards is our dedicated staff and incredible volunteers who look after our green spaces and continue to support the wonderful countryside in Worcestershire, the spaces would not be the same without them.”

Worcester Woods, Waseley Hills and St Wulstans join parks and green spaces as diverse as the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, Woodhouse Park in Peterlee and Chiswick Old Cemetery in London.

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Paul Todd,  Keep Britain Tidy’s accreditation manager,  said: “I would like to congratulate everyone involved in making these three greenspaces worthy of a Green Flag Award.

"All three are vital green spaces for their communities in Worcestershire.

"This award is a testament to all the hard work of staff and volunteers, who do so much to ensure that it maintains the high standards demanded by the Green Flag Award.”