A PARK which has gone back to its wild roots received a prestigious award for its un-cultivated green space.

Preston Park, near Stockton, took home a Silver award at the Autumn Harrogate Flower Show 2019 for their creative space border made by rangers and volunteers.

‘A Celebration of Rewilding’ reflects plans for dedicated areas in Preston Park over the coming months by letting nature ‘do its own thing’ with the hope that native flora and fauna will return.

The Northern Echo:

It also aims to inspire gardeners to help play their part in protecting local wildlife at home by resisting the temptation to tidy - leaving hollow stems, logs, leaf piles and areas of unmown lawns as habitat for bees, beetles, bugs and other native species to thrive in the environment.

Councillor Jim Beall, Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council's Cabinet Member for Health, Leisure and Culture, said: “We are delighted that Preston Park is part of this year’s prestigious Harrogate Flower Show.

“The natural border gives the opportunity to tell the story about the benefits of rewilding and the changes that Rangers and volunteers hope to make to the Park over the next few years.

“We hope that after seeing ‘A Celebration of Rewilding’, people will be encouraged to leave a place in their own gardens for nature to ‘go wild’.

"In doing so who knows what will grow and what wildlife it may attract?”