Contributor Leaderboard

Residents and visitors to Northumberland will be given a rare opportunity to see some of the county’s hidden architectural treasures when the doors to many of its most historic buildings are opened to the public, free of charge. The Heritage Open Days event is taking place between Thursday 7 and Sunday 10 of September. The open days are free and fun and provide an excellent opportunity for people of all ages to explore the fantastic cultural heritage of Northumberland. A wide range of tours, events and activities are on offer. Dozens of attractions are taking part including the ever popular Cragside House in Rothbury. There will be the the opportunity to look around local churches, Morpeth Clock Tower and the Rothbury Trenches. There will also be the chance to look behind the scenes of Northumberland Archives at Woodhorn Museum and get a rare glimpse into the work that goes into preserving diverse collections which cover over 800 years of Northumberland’s fascinating history. Northumberland county Councillor, cabinet member with responsibility for culture , arts and leisure, Cllr Cath Homer said: “ This hugely popular annual event provides free public access to historic buildings and local landmarks, many of which are not usually open to the public. "It's an unmissable opportunity for residents and visitors to get a glimpse behind the scenes, and perhaps get a better understanding and appreciation of our county's rich cultural heritage.” Heritage Open Days is England's largest festival of history and culture, bringing together over 2,500 organisations, 5,000 events and 40,000 volunteers. To view a full list of this year’s attractions visit https://www.heritageopendays.org.uk/

Green fingered Northumbrians have done the county proud yet again as they collected a string of awards after impressing judges in this year’s Northumbria in Bloom awards. Dozens of towns, villages and businesses showed off their floral displays, summer planting and well tended parks and gardens in the competition which has seen communities and council staff pull together to show off local neighbourhoods at their best. The county did exceptionally well in the Towns category with Morpeth winning overall Gold for the bright displays that have produced a blaze of colour right across the town. Alnwick won Gold, Bedlington won Silver and Berwick and Hexham were awarded Silver Gilt. In the Large Towns category, Blyth won Silver and Cramlington won Silver Gilt. In the Small Towns category Ponteland and Seaton Sluice won gold with Seaton Delaval achieving bronze. Seaton Delaval won the Most Improved entry for enthusiastically taking on a number of neglected areas for transformation and for the hard work and vision of the community. The county’s villages also scooped a number of fantastic awards against tough competition. Ord near Berwick won the Large Villages category. Judges found the village to be pristine throughout with residents taking a great pride in keeping their neighbourhood spotless as well as caring for the many tubs and planters. There were celebrations elsewhere as Holywell and New Hartley won Silver and Seghill won Bronze in the Large Villages category. East Hartford won Silver in the Small Villages category and Lesbury won Silver Gilt in the Villages category. The popular Ridley Park in Blyth was winner of the Best Park award for its beautifully landscaped public space. Young growers in the county also got involved and Tweedmouth West First School in Berwick scooped the Growing Together for Schools award. Other Gold winners included Alnmouth Railway Station ( best bus/metro/rail station) The parish hall garden, Corbridge ( best Grounds of a hospital, university or public building) Ord Country Park ( best commercial premises) Berwick Bowling Club ( best sports ground) Woodbine Terrace, Corbridge ( best residential community). A number of very worthy awards were made for outstanding voluntary contributions. Neville Rutherford of Corbridge for his inspiring leadership of Corbridge in Bloom; Kenneth Thompson from Morpeth for his commitment to the ‘In Bloom’ entry and George Anderson for his contribution to the betterment of Ord Village Councillor Glen Sanderson, cabinet member for environment and local services at Northumberland County Council, said: “It is wonderful that the hard work and efforts of a few have made the towns and villages where we live such attractive places. We really do appreciate their work and congratulate everyone involved. ”