MORE parks and green spaces than ever will be flying the Green Flag Award this year – 1,582 across the UK.

Pannett Park in Whitby, Glen and Crescent Gardens in Filey and Falsgrave Park and Peasholm Park in Scarborough are four of the very best in the UK – and that’s official.

The parks are among a record-breaking 1,582 parks and green spaces that will receive a prestigious Green Flag Award – the mark of a quality park or green space.

The award recognises and rewards the best parks and green spaces across the country. A Green Flag flying overhead is a sign to the public that the space boasts the highest possible standards, is beautifully maintained and has excellent facilities.

Paul Thompson, Scarborough Borough Council's operations, transport and countryside manager, said: “We are absolutely delighted to receive a Green Flag Award once again for each of our borough’s four top parks. Parks and open spaces play a key role in the life of our local communities and these awards recognise and highlight that people in our borough are benefitting from green spaces of the very highest quality with the best possible facilities for all to enjoy.

“We’d like to take this opportunity to thank all the friends’ groups and other volunteers that work hard all year round to help us make our parks the award winning places they are, we couldn’t do it without them.”

Paul Todd, Keep Britain Tidy International Green Flag Award Scheme manager, said: “We are delighted to be celebrating another record-breaking year for the Green Flag Award scheme. All the flags flying this year are a testament to the efforts of the thousands of men and women, both staff and volunteers, who work tirelessly to maintain the high standards demanded by the Green Flag Award.”

The announcement of this year’s award winners comes in the same week that thousands of people up and down the country are enjoying Love Parks Week (July 24 to August 2), an annual celebration of the country’s fantastic green spaces and the community groups that bring them to life.

There will be a special celebration event in Whitby’s Pannett Park on Wednesday. The event, from 11am to 3pm will commemorate the donation of the land for the park to the people of Whitby by Robert Elliot Pannett in 1920.

There will be various games, stalls, activities and entertainment and people are invited to bring a picnic with them.

Lynsey Atherton from Keep Britain Tidy will attend the celebration to promote the work of Keep Britain Tidy and the Green Flag scheme.