IT’S not quite the garden of Eden.
But today a Kirkburton churchyard has scooped a coveted award after judges deemed it a high-quality green space – for the fourth year running.
And it’s all thanks to 10 local volunteers who lovingly tend to the grounds at All Hallows Parish Church.
The All Hallows Churchyard Team have been presented with the Green Pennant Award given to outstanding green spaces managed by volunteers.
The accolade is part of the Green Flag scheme, a national standard for quality parks and green spaces.
Volunteer Ian Gunson said it is the only graveyard in the north of England to be given the accolade.
He said someone is down at the Shelley Lane grounds every weekend, clearing the paths and making sure everything is just so.
“We’ve been looking after the churchyard for nine years now,” he said.
“It’s a very old churchyard and where there’s no footfall to the graves we’ve let it run wild with all the wild flowers.”
There are some 40 different varieties of local wild flowers in the churchyard.
Ian, 70, said: “When we started out it was totally overgrown with brambles and when we had finished it turned out to be one of the largest green spaces in Kirkburton.
“We try and encourage the local wildflowers which are tending to die out because of intensive farming.”
This year the group have seen a large increase in butterflies attracted to the native flowers.
Ian said the team had not cut back the ragwort because it attracted cinnabar caterpillars, which become beautiful red and black cinnabar moths.
He said: “Ragwort is a dangerous weed though and it is poisonous to horses if they eat it.”
The team are delighted with their fourth Green Pennant award in the last five years.
Ian, a former BT engineer, said: “People can visit graves in a nice environment and it is also a space that visitors can walk through and enjoy the peace and tranquility.”
The 10-strong group came up with the idea of transforming the churchyard after a complaint from a woman visiting her husband’s grave about the state of the church grounds.
Also celebrating are staff and volunteers at Oakwell Hall Country Park.
The park in Birstall has won its sixth successive Green Flag award.
The 110-acre Oakwell Hall Country Park impressed the judges once again with its excellent use of green space, well-maintained facilities and high standard of safety and security.
