Morgan Jones Park in Caerphilly, Waunfawr Park in Crosskeys and The Wern Park in Nelson have been officially recognised as some of the best parks in the UK.
The three popular sites have been recognised as some of the country’s best green spaces after they each received a prestigious Green Flag Award.
Green Flag Awards recognise and reward the best parks in the country and all three parks stood out after impressing the judges with their excellent use of green space, well-maintained facilities and high standard of safety and security.
Councillor Lyn Ackerman, cabinet member for the environment welcomed the news.
She said: “We are extremely proud of our local parks and these awards reflect the high standards of facilities on offer across the county borough. Local people of all ages use our parks throughout the year and they continue to be an important community asset. We hope to build on this success and I would like to congratulate all the people involved in the running of our parks on this fantastic achievement.”
Only green spaces that are free to enter and open to the public are eligible to win an award through the scheme, which is run by environmental charities Keep Britain Tidy, BTCV and GreenSpace.
Morgan Jones Park in Caerphilly has also achieved Level 1 of the highly acclaimed Green Dragon Environmental Standard Award as part of its commitment to maintain and improve the environment and long-term sustainability of the park.
The park’s recent audit included an assessment of all the activities that impact on the environment of the site. Staff had to provide an Environmental Policy that shows continual environmental improvement, compliance with environmental legislation, prevention of pollution and communication of environmental issues.
Simon Beacham, senior parks officer, said: “Every activity we undertake in the park has an impact on the environment. By undertaking the Green Dragon Environmental Standard Award we had to interrogate our daily work practices and look to reduce the impact on the environment including reducing pesticide use and monitoring water and utility costs. This is fantastic news for the park and follows on from our sixth consecutive national Green Flag Award.”