SHOPS, businesses and charities in Malvern who have gone the extra mile to make the town a floral paradise have this week been receiving their reward.

The winners of the Malvern Traders in Bloom have been announced, and on Tuesday, the winners and highly commended entrants were invited to Malvern Town Council's office to receive their certificates.

Organisations across Great Malvern, Malvern Link and Barnards Green entered the competition, which was split into two categories: floral display and window display.

The judges, Malvern's deputy mayor Julian I’Anson and Bill Simpson of the Royal Horticultural Society, assessed each entry for its creativity, use of colour, and relevance to theme, which this year was Growing for Gold Pollinators. to celebrate the role of bees and other insects in pollinating our plants

The judges said that “the standard of displays we saw was exceptionally high this year”, and that “judging was a difficult task indeed.”

But they managed to select a winner in each category, with the Morgan pub in Clarence Road topping the floral display category, and the Oxfam shop in the town centre scooping the award for top window display.

Mr Bill Simpson praised the Morgan, saying “I was impressed by the very colourful courtyard, with its hanging baskets and water feature. A clear winner.”

And Cllr I’Anson said “The Oxfam shop’s window display was outstanding in both character and theme.”

Wayne Rutter, manager of the Oxfam shop, said: "We won last year's bloom competition and we won the Christmas window competition, so I expect people are getting a little sick of us.

"But we really didn't expect to win this year, because one of the window panes blew out in very gusty weather in February, and because this is a listed building, it takes some time to get it done properly.

"We've got one window covered in wood and held up with battens across the front, so we were really surprised when the judges came in and said how wonderful it was."

RESULTS

Floral display category: 1- the Morgan pub, 2 - Shrinking Violet Bespoke Floristry, 3 - Malvern Instruments. Highly commended - Spice Cottage.

Window competition category: 1 - Oxfam, 2 - Age UK, 3 - Shaw Trust. Highly commended - Malvern Hills Gallery, Petals Florist; commended - the Bedroom Centre.