Winners announced in Northamptonshire housing association's first ever Bloom Fest including best looking street award
Green-fingered residents have been recognised in a new gardening competition celebrating the pride communities take in their Northamptonshire homes and neighbourhoods.
Organised by Northants housing association Greatwell Homes, garden enthusiasts have been nurturing their best blooms and home-grown produce to give them a chance of winning one of the Bloom Fest 2026 titles.
Open to Greatwell Homes customers, budding gardeners were invited to send their entries to the organisation to be assessed by a judging panel.
With summer coming to an end the housing provider has now announced the winners in the inaugural year of the competition.
Among those taking the top prize are Wellingborough Independent Living Scheme, Barringers Court, in the most colourful independent living scheme category, praised for its array of colourful bedding containers and involvement from residents in the garden, while Victoria Close in Earls Barton bagged the best looking street award.
Both winners secured £250 to be spent on communal areas for residents to benefit from.
Individual awards saw Barringers Court resident Michael win the best produce category for his array of produce, a family in Trelawney win the most improved garden, and John from Earls Barton secured the title of best flower arrangement for his stunning indoor vase arrangement.
John Ross, head of housing and neighbourhoods at Greatwell Homes, said: “We’ve been blown away by the quality of entries for our first ever Bloom Fest competition.
"The pride and dedication our customers have in their homes and communities really shone through and the winners and runners-up all thoroughly deserve their awards.
"A huge congratulations from everyone at Greatwell Homes.
“After the success of this year’s competition, we’ll be encouraging even more of our customers to take to their trowels, prepare their plant pots and get ready for Bloom Fest 2027.”
Hayley from Trelawney, winner of the most improved garden said after being informed of her winning garden: “Winning this award means so much to our family.
"I have never won anything before. The garden was a mess when we moved in - we had to level it with topsoil and lay turf and it was loved so much by the boys when they were younger.
"Now they are older, we changed it again with shrubs, a seating area and solar lights and made a nice patio where we do home growing of
herbs, vegetables and fruit.
“We also love to sit watching the birds come to their feeder and listening to the wind chimes and feel relax. Thank you Greatwell Homes!”
A full list of winners and runners-up for Bloom Fest 2026 can be found on the Greatwell Homes website.
Greatwell Homes is one of the largest housing associations in Northamptonshire, owning and managing more than 5,200 homes in Wellingborough, Kettering, Raunds and Northampton.
As a community-based housing provider, they say they are all about creating safe, secure and sustainable homes for people.
They aim to do this by shaping great communities and delivering services that work well for local people.