Tree-mendous gesture by mayor

TOWN mayor Eileen Anderson has played her part in making a Bognor Regis open space more attractive.

Cllr Anderson helped to plant a weeping silver birch she bought for the Sunken Gardens.

Her purchase was to back the Bognor Community Gardeners who have transformed the town centre since they first got out their spades and trowels some 18 months ago.

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“The volunteers have done such a marvellous job here for the community,” she said.

“I wanted to show them some support. The gardeners have made the gardens so much better known and given them more recognition.

“I hope to join them when my time as mayor finishes because I really like gardening.”

The weeping silver birch cost £36 and has been planted in the centre of the gardens, which stretch between West Street and the Hothamton car park off Queensway.

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One of the community gardeners’ founders, Kim Davis, said: “We are working on the gardens’ central part because it was looking a bit straggly and it’s kind of the mayor to donate the tree.”

Mrs Davis started the gardeners to make the town look better. A survey of residents around the gardens showed they backed that aim and wanted the site opened up to help to get rid of the anti-social behaviour which occurred there.

“The responses we got back showed people were overwhelmingly in favour of creating a garden for wildlife,” Ms Davis said.

“We have put in a lot of wild flowers and fruiting bushes and a cherry plum tree.”

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A herb border has also been created to allow residents to pick their own.

The work has been carried out with the help of Arun District Council’s contractor, ISS, and community groups such as the Prince’s Trust and the Big Love charity.

Up to 19 volunteers have turned up on occasions to put in up to 38-and-a-half hours unpaid work a week. Other sessions see two or three go along.

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