Ashby's Bath Grounds has retained its Green Flag Status after being awarded the accolade for the first time last year.

In a record-breaking year for the Green Flag Award, as the scheme marks its Silver Jubilee, Ashby Bath Grounds is one of 2,127 celebrating success.

Ashby de la Zouch Town Council is today (Friday) raising a Green Flag Award for Ashby Bath Grounds.

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

After 18 months that have seen our parks and green spaces play a vital role for people through lockdowns as a place to relax, exercise and meet friends and family safely, the news that the Bath Grounds has achieved the Green Flag Award is testament to the hard work and dedication of the team that make the green space a great space that everyone can enjoy.

Friends of the Bath Grounds highlight work carried out at Ashby's 'Jewel in the Crown'.

Ashby Bath Grounds joins parks and green spaces as diverse as the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, Woodhouse Park in Peterlee and Chiswick Old Cemetery in London.

Commenting on the news that the Bath Grounds has achieved the Green Flag Award standard, Scheme Manager Paul Todd said: "I would like to congratulate everyone involved in making Ashby Bath Grounds worthy of a Green Flag Award.

"To meet the requirements demanded by the scheme is testament to the hard work of the staff and volunteers who do so much to ensure that the Bath Grounds has high standards of horticulture, safety and environmental management and is a place that supports people to live healthy lives."

Councillor John Coxon, Leader of Ashby de la Zouch Town Council, said: "I am absolutely delighted that the Town Council has been successful in its application to retain a Green Flag Award for Ashby Bath Grounds.

"We have shown that running the Bath Grounds, which are well-used and valued by our community, is about more than just cutting the grass.

"We have established that effective management and the use of skilled staff, along with the support of the local community, are key to creating a fantastic public park.

"I believe that we are still the only Town Council in Leicestershire to have achieved this award."

Ashby's Bath Ground is given Green Flag Award for first time.

Councillor Roger Bayliss, Chairman of the Town Council's Parks & Cemetery Committee added: "This is another huge achievement for the town and testament to all of the hard work put in over the last few years by the Town Council's grounds maintenance team and many volunteers."

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.

In celebration of this year's announcement, Green Flag Award is asking buildings and monuments around the UK to #GoGreenForParks today to show appreciation for the spaces that mean so much to people.