Top award for Crematorium's
Report with thanks to Liverpool City Council.

THE Garden of Remembrance at Springwood Crematorium in Liverpool has earned a top award. 
It has been awarded a Green Flag by the Civic Trust. It is believed to be only the third crematorium in the country to earn this accolade with the other two being cemeteries which have crematoria on their sites.

The Crematorium Garden joins seven other green spaces in Liverpool which have gained Green Flags 
Springwood Crematorium covers 5.2 hectares in south Liverpool. Up to 2500 services are carried out each year and about 400,000 people visit the crematorium and its gardens.

Memorial beds are planted with roses and the gardens are also planted to ensure that there is colour and interest all year round, from a variety of trees to naturalised bulbs and annual and herbaceous borders. The planting also supports a wide variety of bird life.

There are a number of smaller gardens the site including a woodland garden and a Babies Memorial Garden with a central obelisk and planted arbours.

The other Liverpool Green Flag winners are Calderstones Park; Reynolds Park; Woolton Woods and Camphill; St Johns Gardens; St Nicholas Church Garden; Falkner Square and Everton Park Nature Garden. They all gained Green Flags last year

Councillor Warren Bradley,Executive Member said:- "This is yet another record achievement for our parks and green spaces. No other city can boast not only the number of Green Flags but the variety of green spaces which have achieved this award.

We are extremely proud that the Garden of Remembrance should be honoured. It provides an oasis of calm for bereaved people. 

I would like to thank all the staff both from the council and our contractors who have played a part in bringing these awards to the city."

The Green Flag Award scheme is the national standard for parks and green spaces. It is managed by the Civic Trust, and the scheme recognises the value of green spaces in communities, particularly urban environments, and rewards excellent standards of park management. 

Southport martial arts expert sets sights on more success

YES, Andrew from Ainsdale, was able to make his way to the tournament to represent Great Britain. This lead place on the GB team powered him on to winning a silver medal at the European Wushu Championships in Moscow.

Competing with fellow competitor, Richard Divine, the duo proved themselves as a force to be reckoned with by finishing second in the Duilian Dual event. Andrew comments:- "We pulled off a great result and I'm really pleased with what we have achieved. This was the first international event that I have competed in and to get a silver medal is amazing."

The pair have been entering dual events for nearly a year now and having already won a gold medal at the National Championships, the future looks bright for them! 

Andrew, 22, has been practicing Wushu, a form of martial arts used in the Matrix films and by kung fu legend Jackie Chan, since he was 15. His dedication has paid off with Hollywood noticing his talent and signing him up to appear in the next Batman film, due out next summer.

He has also recently proved his worth in the British National Championships, held in June, by taking home two gold and two silver medals. He received gold in the Broad Sword Fight Scene and Choreographed Fight Scene categories.

With all his success to date, Andrew's is now setting his sights on future contests with the Petersburg Cup coming up in February and the World Championships in July. He is also looking to the 2008 Olympics which will be held in Beijing. He continues:- "Wushu has never been an Olympic sport but there are high hopes that it will be included in 2008. If it is I definitely intend on going and being in contention for a medal."

His sponsor Stuart Roberts, Specsavers' Southport, adds:- "We are delighted at Andrew's success - after all his hard work and training he deserves it. It's great that we were able to help him on his way to success and I wish him all the best for future events - I'm sure he will win plenty more medals!"

Wushu, which is also referred to as Kung Fu, is a generic term for Chinese Martial arts composed of basic offensive and defensive movements executed either barehanded or with weapons. Wushu originated in China 5,000 years ago and it is considered to be one of China's major cultural gifts to the world. It is the most popular form of physical exercise in China.

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