Editing Britain in Bloom (section)

{{Short description|Horticultural campaign in the UK}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2015}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2015}}
{{update|date=May 2018}}
'''RHS Britain in Bloom''' is the largest [[horticulture|horticultural]] campaign in the United Kingdom. It was first held in 1963, initiated by the [[VisitBritain|British Tourist Board]] based on the example set by Fleurissement de France (now Conseil national de villes et villages fleuris), which since 1959 has promoted the annual [[Concours des villes et villages fleuris]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rbkc.gov.uk/ParksAndGardens/inbloom/ib_about.asp|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080906150455/http://www.rbkc.gov.uk/ParksAndGardens/inbloom/ib_about.asp|title=Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea - About In Bloom|archivedate=6 September 2008}}</ref> It has been organised by the [[Royal Horticultural Society]] (RHS) since 2002.

The competition is entered by the communities of towns, villages and cities. [[#Structure|Different categories]] exist for various sizes of settlements. Groups are assessed for their achievements in three core pillars: Horticultural Excellence; Environmental Responsibility; and Community Participation.

Over 1,600 communities around the UK enter each year, participating in their [[#Regions|local region's]] "in Bloom" campaign. From these regional competitions, roughly 80 communities are selected to enter the national Finals of RHS Britain in Bloom.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/communities/campaigns/britain-in-bloom/about |title=Supporting communities improving their environment through gardening |publisher=rhs}}</ref>

It is a popular campaign, estimated to involve more than 200,000 volunteers in cleaning up and greening up their local area.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rhs.org.uk/Gardening/Community-gardening/Britain-in-Bloom/New-to-Bloom/Community-campaign-statistics|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110808213028/http://www.rhs.org.uk/Gardening/Community-gardening/Britain-in-Bloom/New-to-Bloom/Community-campaign-statistics|title=RHS Britain in Bloom campaign statistics|archivedate=8 August 2011}}</ref>

Since 2002, the awards have been based on the Royal Horticultural Society's [[Royal Horticultural Society#Medals and awards|medal]] standards of Gold, Silver Gilt, Silver and Bronze;<ref>''The Garden'' (Journal of The Royal Horticultural Society), October 2002, p752</ref> the winner is the settlement judged to have most successfully met the rigorous judging criteria. Judging at the regional stage takes place around June/ July; judging for the national stage takes place in August. The results for the UK Finals are announced in September/ October. The competition covers the UK, the [[Channel Islands]] and the [[Isle of Man]].

Floral displays play an important part in the contest, but the "Bloom" title is now, perhaps, misleading: in recent years the competition has increasingly assessed how all sectors of the local community are managing their local environment.

In 2006, the RHS introduced the Neighbourhood Awards (now the [[#RHS It's Your Neighbourhood|It's Your Neighbourhood]] campaign), a grassroots sister campaign to Bloom, supporting smaller, volunteer-led community groups focused on improving their immediate environment.