HOPES are high a dedicated team of volunteers can achieve a five-star performance in this year’s Britain in Bloom contest.
But like any annual event, the planning for next year is already well advanced, with further arty additions coming to the town.
Pieces by local artist Chris Cypress have already formed many centrepieces around the area – but more are to come as well as installations from others.
Add that to the efforts of both the Friends of Mossley Park and Mossley Town Team, who have
not only spruced up and brightened up several locations but also created a new picnic area close to the old town hall, and it is easy to see why the aim is for a level five grading, the highest possible.
Paul Dowthwaite, secretary of Friends of Mossley Park and chairman of Mossley Town Team, told The Correspondent: “We’ve a committed band of volunteers and Britain in Bloom focuses the mind and gives us something to aim for.
“We don’t lack ambition but this gives us a real target to aim for. We hope this year we’ll get the top award.
“The Art Trail is in collaboration with the Town Team and that’s the most exciting project we have.
“Now the art students at Mossley Hollins High School have done a mural, which will be put up in Top Mossley.
“Another of Chris’ paintings, which looks across the valley and shows gardeners, is going up on the wall opposite the picnic area.
“There’s another one looking across the valley that’s being installed at a private house.
“There’s interest from other people too and we’re hoping this will take off and Mossley will become an outdoor art gallery.
“It’s great there’s interest from others. We’re also in negotiations wit the Canal and Rivers Trust to put one up showing the Tollemache Arms on the bridge just by the pub.
“Over the next couple of years, we’ll see a transformation of Mossley.
Everything goes together but we’ve also done an awful lot of planting, with the picnic area the big one.
“In the masterplan for the park, people said they wanted a picnic area. Now they’ve got one.”
Mossley’s volunteers hope to find out how they have done in October after nervously awaiting the judge’s arrival.
They showed off all their hard work, including creating an orchard and wildflower area close to the picnic tables, which cost £1,000 each after securing funds from the Co-Operative’s community fund and from Tameside and Glossop Wellbeing alliance.
They were open to any ideas brought up at judging on Monday, August 2.
Paul added: “The judge will make comments on what we’re doing but will also say, ‘We think you should do a bit of this.’
“We’ve taken them up in the past and done things in the town based on them and there are areas we’d like to open up in the future.
“There’s an area that’s like a secret woodland. We need, with the council’s help, to make that safe then we can put an adventure area in it.”