Shanklin VYCC Awarded Coveted Green Flag Award — Recognised As One Of Country’s Best Parks

Shanklin Voluntary Youth and Community Centre (VYCC) is celebrating after receiving a Green Flag Award for its community space, with volunteers also maintaining the County Ground, home of Shanklin FC, and other locations in the town.

The site is one of 2,250 in the UK to achieve the award, which is the international quality

mark for parks and green spaces.

The news that Shanklin VYCC has met the standards required for the accreditation is

testament to the hard work and dedication of the team that care for the green space so that visitors and residents alike can enjoy it.

Green Flag Award Scheme Manager, Paul Todd MBE, said:

“Congratulations to everyone involved with Shanklin VYCC and Shanklin FC who have worked tirelessly to ensure that it achieves the high standards required for the Green Flag Award.

“Quality parks and green spaces like that at Victoria Avenue and the County Ground make the country a heathier place to live and work in, and a stronger place in which to invest."

SVYCC Leader Mark Biddlecombe added:

"Thanks to Christine and all the volunteers at the club, the Green Space is just one of the activities available at the centre, for example our involvement with local Carnivals this summer."

Paul Todd concluded:

“Crucially, Victoria Avenue is a vital green space for communities in Shanklin to enjoy nature, and during the ongoing cost of living crisis it is a free and safe space for families to socialise. It also provides important opportunities for local people and visitors to reap the physical and mental health benefits of green space.”

The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under

licence from the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of green spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.