Team Stamford hands over £1,000 to Stamford in Bloom

A town will be bursting with blooms this year thanks to a well-received whip-round.

Neil McIvor from the volunteers group Team Stamford asked people to put their hands in their pockets and donate money to Stamford in Bloom.

Within three days £1,000 had been raised through donations from individuals and businesses around the town.

Neil said: “We had donations from lots of different people, including a very generous amount from Frank Newbon signs, and from Askers Bakery, Hindmarch garage, The Slanted Door and Nathan’s market stall.

“I closed the GoFundMe page after three days, when we reached £1,000, but will do the same sort of appeal each spring.”

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Receiving the donation from Neil on behalf of Stamford in Bloom, Helen Lewis said: “We don’t have a large regular income for the upkeep of the containers and baskets around town, and so this donation will make a huge difference.

“We are extremely grateful to townspeople who donated, and hope everyone can enjoy the displays we will now be able to create.”

Stamford in Bloom members, led by Duncan Lingard, spend their spare time planting bulbs and flowers, tending and watering the containers throughout the summer, and ensuring the town looks its best for residents and visitors. The group is also responsible for decorating a bike with a changing display at the roundabout near Stamford Hospital, and for the decorated chairs that are dotted around the town.

Members plan to spend the £1,000 on plants from Stamford Market and Wothorpe Nursery, where they are given a discount, and hope to install a polytunnel for growing their own at the MindSpace Stamford allotment garden off Uffington Road.

Anyone who would like to volunteer to support Stamford in Bloom this year can get in touch by emailing stamford18bloom@gmail.com.

There are several ‘In Bloom’ groups across the area, including Bourne in Bloom, Oakham in Bloom, Uppingham in Bloom and Spalding in Bloom, which are appraised each year in July for their efforts by East Midlands in Bloom Competition judges.

Uppingham and Bourne were among last year’s prize winners.