Hospital Blooms Thanks to Local Companies

Date: Wednesday, June 22, 2005
Time: 9.30am
Venue: Outside main entrance to West Suffolk Hospital, Bury St Edmunds

West Suffolk Hospital has entered this year’s Bury In Bloom competition thanks to the generosity of four local companies and the support of St Edmundsbury Borough Council.

Services to Business at Nowton Nursery, Sperrinks Nursery in Gazeley, Fordham Nursery and Bury landscaping company Proscape have donated plants, soil, and labour for hanging baskets and planters.

Steve Moore, Director of Facilities, said: "This has been a fantastic example of the community and businesses pulling together to enable the trust to have baskets once again. Without this huge community effort we would not have had any baskets due to our financial constraints this year.

"A big thanks must go to the hospital’s Julie Pettit for co-ordinating everything alongside the Bury in Bloom team for making it all happen. What a wonderful opportunity for all involved, perhaps we may even win an award this year."

The baskets and planters were organised by Caroline Brown, Area Parks Officer at St Edmundsbury Borough Council.

Caroline said: "In my role in the parks team I have lots of contact with buyers and suppliers. I thought it would be a shame if there was a no display at the hospital this year so I asked whether local businesses would donate."

Fordham Nursery supplied all the compost plus six half barrels and their plants. Glenn King, from Fordham Nursery, said: "We felt that, other than to enhance the aesthetics of the planting scheme at the hospital, our plants would be therapeutic by offering something beautiful for the patients to look out and see."

Clive Sperrink, of Sperrinks Nursery that supplied plants for the hanging baskets, said: "We felt it was a shame that the hospital would not be having its hanging baskets and planters this year and so we were happy to help.

"A bit of colour around the hospital really does help to cheer people up and we hope this is a boost for patients."

Services to Business based from Moreton Hall in Bury St Edmunds planted the hanging baskets and planters. Services to Business is a learning disability centre which offers daytime opportunities for people to learn horticultural and other skills. It is part of Nowton Nursery.

Neil Bland, Services to Business Community Resource Manager, said: "Our customers like to be involved with community based organisations and this was a way in which we could directly help the local hospital."

Proscape provided transport.