Press Archive

2005 Avonside Village of the Year Competition Launches

The 2005 Avonside Village of the Year competition has just been launched and, with the provision of £500 additional prize money for the competition, villages have an extra incentive to enter this year.

The competition is run on behalf of the Avonside branch of the CPRE (Campaign for the Protection of Rural England) and sponsored by Calor, the UK’s leading supplier of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). The competition judges communities on six aspects of rural village life with categories in Building Community Life, Business, Young People, Older People, the Environment and Information Communication Technology (ICT). The extra £500 prize money is thanks to competition support from Defra (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs).

Defra is providing additional funding in 2005 at both county and national level to enhance the newly established Building Community Life category. This is being split amongst large and small winning villages in the Bath and North East Somerset, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire areas. The Avonside Village of the Year competition also offers prizes for the best overall large village (population between 1,500 and 5,000), the best overall small village (population under 1,500), the best village in the past winners’ section, and overall small and large district winners.

There are also prizes available in each category. However, organisers are keen to stress that the competition is about more than prizes: “Although the prize money is certainly one of the benefits of entering, it is by no means the only reason villages should take part in the Avonside Village of the Year competition. The competition gets residents working together and encourages them to look at how everyone within the community is being provided for. It’s an opportunity for them to celebrate all the positive aspects of life in their village and to consider any issues or opportunities that become apparent following their involvement in the competition.”

Later in the year, one village from Avonside will also have the opportunity of gaining national recognition in the prestigious English Calor Village of the Year^® competition, which was launched in February on the BBC’s Countryfile programme. Thanks to Defra’s involvement, 2005 marks the first year in the competition’s history that every village in England has the opportunity to enter the English Calor Village of the Year^® competition, which this year has a prize fund of over £36,000.

In 2004, Avonside’s main entrant, Chew Magna, did particularly well in the national competition, winning the regional category title for Older People. The county’s ICT entrant was also successful in that section of last year’s national competition and was presented with a Special Merit Award by judges.

“We have sent out entry forms for the county competition to parish clerks throughout the county, but any community group can actually complete the form. The experiences of villages that have entered the competition in the past highlight the benefits that the competitive experience can bring: the raised community spirit and re-energising of the village. Our judges look for communities that are making the best of what they’ve got for the benefit of all residents. Although they do take into account how tidy and well presented a village is, we are not looking for ‘pretty’ villages and this is certainly not a ‘Best Kept’ competition. A well maintained, tidy village with plenty going on is what they will be looking for.”

Entry forms and further information regarding the competition are available from Brian Challis by email at info@calorvillageoftheyear.org, or by telephoning 01454 228 519. The deadline for entries is 31st May 2005 and villages will be visited by judges in July and August. The winners will be announced mid September, and a formal presentation event will take place on 26th November at the Rangeworthy King George V Memorial Hall.

Further press information from: Emma Flinn, Flent PR Ltd tel: 0161 817 4200 email: emma.flinn@Amaze plc