Last updated: October 2021
“The Nottingham in Bloom campaign is a city-wide partnership which includes residents, businesses, schools, community groups and a wide range of volunteers. The aim is to encourage more people to get involved to improve their local area. Together they [through the campaign] produce horticultural excellence and enhance the local landscape, the environment and the character of Nottingham.” (Ref. 1)
Overview
Nature-based solution
- Grey infrastructure featuring greens
- Alley or street trees and other street vegetation
- Parks and urban forests
- Pocket parks/neighbourhood green spaces
- Other
- Community gardens and allotments
- Community gardens
- Horticulture
Key challenges
- Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
- Habitat and biodiversity conservation
- Green space creation and/or management
- Environmental quality
- Waste management
- Regeneration, land-use and urban development
- Promote natural styles of landscape design for urban development
- Inclusive and effective governance (SDG 16)
- Inclusive governance
- Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
- Social cohesion
- Social interaction
- Health and well-being (SDG 3)
- Enabling opportunities for physical activity
- Improving mental health
- Improving physical health
- Creation of opportunities for recreation
- Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)
- Sustainable consumption
- Sustainable production
Focus
Creation of new green areas, Transformation of previously derelict areas
Project objectives
The Nottingham in Bloom year-round campaign is about making the city cleaner and greener all while promoting interaction among local communities. (ref. 2, 3)
Sustainability is essential to the campaign and aims to promote environmentally friendly and cost-effective measures. It is a city-wide partnership which includes residents, businesses, schools, community groups and a wide range of volunteers, which aims to encourage more people to get involved to improve their local areas. (ref. 1)
Furthermore, the city aims to improve biodiversity by planting wildflower meadows in city parks (encouraging wildlife and challenging residents' perception of management and maintenance of grassland in semi-formal settings"). (ref. 5)
The campaign aims to highlight how gardens and green spaces can improve health and happiness. (ref. 2)
Implementation activities
Works to produce horticultural excellence; enhance the local landscape; the environment; recycles/reuses plants; supports/encourages local neighborhoods (ref. 1). Also, many opportunities are available (for e.g. local businesses to sponsor) including sponsoring a traffic island, park, flowerbed or floral feature (ref. 4 ). Also, activities include involvement in the 'Neighborhood Bloom campaigns' (a scheme which involves people to work together in order to brighten up the landscape, including growing fruit/vegetables and creating communal planting areas) (ref. 3, 2).
Planting wildflower meadows in city parks a total of 2.7 hectares, e.g. in Woodthorpe Park (including bee-friendly habitat by a member of the Nottingham in Bloom Design Group). Also, the amount of seasonal bedding on traffic islands/parks has been reduced: uses mostly permanent planting to create sustainable/attractive displays that are better for wildlife (ref. 5).
Biodiversity conservation or restoration-focused activities
Biodiversity conservation:
- Protect and enhance urban habitats
- Create new habitats
- Protect species
- Undertake specific measures to protect species
- Undertake specific measures to protect native species
- Undertake specific measures to protect endangered species
- Undertake specific measures to protect valued species
Main beneficiaries
- Local government/Municipality
- Non-government organisation/Civil Society
- Private sector/Corporate/Company
- Citizens or community groups
Governance
Management set-up
- Government-led
Type of initiating organisation
- Local government/municipality
Participatory approaches/ community involvement
- Co-planning (e.g. stakeholder workshops, focus groups, participatory mapping)
- Dissemination of information and education
- Consultation (e.g. workshop, surveys, community meetings, town halls)
- Co-management/Joint management
Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project
A year-round campaign by the Nottingham City Council aiming for a cleaner and greener city: in collaboration with members of tenants' and residents' associations, Neighbourhood Bloom groups, citizens (individuals). And the Nottingham in Bloom Garden Competition is sponsored by Notts Wildlife Trust. (Ref. 1, 3, 5)
Project implemented in response to ...
... an EU policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a national policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a local policy or strategy?
Yes
(It is a Nottingham City Council aim to make the city cleaner and greener. (Ref. 3) )
Financing
Total cost
€10,000 - €50,000
Source(s) of funding
- Corporate investment
- Private Foundation/Trust
- Other
Type of funding
- Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
- Other
Non-financial contribution
Type of non-financial contribution
- Provision of land
- Provision of labour
- Exchange of services
Who provided the non-financial contribution?
- Public authorities (e.g. land, utility services)
- Citizens (e.g. volunteering)
- Other
Impacts and Monitoring
Environmental impacts
- Green space and habitat
- Increased green space area
- Increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems
- Reduced biodiversity loss
- Increased number of species present
- Enhanced support of pollination
- Increased spread of native/heirloom/open-pollinated seed
Economic impacts
- Unknown
Socio-cultural impacts
- Social justice and cohesion
- Improved social cohesion
- Fair distribution of social, environmental and economic benefits of the NBS project
- Improved liveability
- Improved access to urban green space
- Increased opportunities for social interaction
- Increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces
- Increased access to healthy/affordable food
- Increased sustainability of agriculture practices
- Health and wellbeing
- Improved physical health
- Improved mental health
- Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
- Cultural heritage and sense of place
- Improvement in people’s connection to nature
- Education
- Increased knowledge of locals about local nature
- Increased awareness of NBS and their benefits
Type of reported impacts
Achieved impacts
Presence of formal monitoring system
Unknown
Presence of indicators used in reporting
Yes
Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports
Yes
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
References
1. Nottingham in Bloom. (n.d.) About Nottingham Bloom. About Us. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
2. CBJ Spotlight. (2016). Nottingham in Bloom: Greening grey Britain. Armstrong, J. News. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
3. Nottingham city council. (n.d.) Nottingham in Bloom. Outdoor activities. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link.
4. Nottingham in Bloom. (n.d.) Nottingham in Bloom: Home. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
5. Nottingham in Bloom. (2012). Nottingham in Bloom and Nottingham city council parks and open spaces. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
6. Nottingham city council. (n.d.) Breathing Space: Revitalising Nottingham's open and green spaces. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: file:///C:/Users/NOREEN~1/AppData/Local/Temp/Source link
7. University of Nottingham. (n.d.) Community chest fund. Your Community. UK. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
8. Nottingham in Bloom. (n.d.) Sponsoring Nottingham in Bloom. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
9. Nottingham in Bloom. (n.d.) Volunteering for Nottingham in Bloom. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
2. CBJ Spotlight. (2016). Nottingham in Bloom: Greening grey Britain. Armstrong, J. News. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
3. Nottingham city council. (n.d.) Nottingham in Bloom. Outdoor activities. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link.
4. Nottingham in Bloom. (n.d.) Nottingham in Bloom: Home. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
5. Nottingham in Bloom. (2012). Nottingham in Bloom and Nottingham city council parks and open spaces. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
6. Nottingham city council. (n.d.) Breathing Space: Revitalising Nottingham's open and green spaces. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: file:///C:/Users/NOREEN~1/AppData/Local/Temp/Source link
7. University of Nottingham. (n.d.) Community chest fund. Your Community. UK. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
8. Nottingham in Bloom. (n.d.) Sponsoring Nottingham in Bloom. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link
9. Nottingham in Bloom. (n.d.) Volunteering for Nottingham in Bloom. Accessed 16 July 2020. Available at: Source link