The Penryn Grounds Team

‘Wonderful’ Penryn Campus wins Green Flag Award

A Cornish university campus described as a “wonderful, unique” place for students has won a Green Flag Award.

Judges described the gardens at the Penryn Campus, shared by the University of Exeter and Falmouth University, as a “horticultural wonder”.

They also said it was a “perfect habitat” for wild flowers, insects, birds and bees, and said Tremough House and the Italian garden were a “plant collector’s paradise”.

The Green Flag Award scheme recognises well-managed parks and green spaces.

“We are absolutely delighted to have been awarded an international Green Flag,” said Tony Sanders, chief executive of Falmouth Exeter Plus (FX Plus), which manages the campus.

“This underlines the continued and dedicated work which our FX Plus team puts in to ensure that we have a world-class, quality offering at Penryn Campus.”

Peter Cox, chief operating officer at Falmouth University, said: “It’s fantastic that the Penryn Campus has received this award; a celebration of great outdoor spaces.

“As well as a place for our students to study and be inspired, the gardens are here for our community to enjoy.

“We’re very proud of our fantastic grounds, and our brilliant colleagues that work hard, all year round, fostering the gardens’ biodiversity and their unique heritage, and maintaining top environmental standards.”

Ruth Grimmer, Head of Professional Services, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campuses, said: “We’re delighted that the hard work and expertise of our estates and grounds teams have been recognized through achieving Green Flag status for our beautiful campus.

“Time and again our students and staff are achieving great things and it cannot be a coincidence that they have amazing grounds as the backdrop within which to study and work.

“We hope it will also encourage more of our community members to come onto campus to walk in the beautiful grounds or use some of the facilities that are open to all.”

Criteria for Green Flag Awards include maintenance of buildings and landscape, environmental management, community involvement, biodiversity and heritage.

In the comments from their inspection, the judges said they saw “sensitive projects which benefit nature throughout the campus”.

They added: “The dedicated team have transformed the site into a wonderful, unique campus for the students.”

The Penryn Campus is among a record-breaking 1,797 UK parks and green spaces that will today receive a Green Flag Award or Green Flag Community Award.

Keep Britain Tidy, which runs the Green Flag Awards, says they are a sign to the public that a place has the “highest possible environmental standards, is beautifully maintained and has excellent visitor facilities”.

Date: 18 July 2017