Harrogate took the Yorkshire Rose for best town or city and Starbeck best urban community; Valley Gardens and two Knaresborough parks won platinum.
Harrogate has been named the best town or city in Yorkshire in Bloom 2026. Harrogate in Bloom won the Yorkshire Rose Award for the best BID, town or city, one of the competition’s discretionary top prizes. Starbeck in Bloom won the equivalent award for the best urban community.
The results were announced at a ceremony in Tadcaster on Thursday 24 September, and Yorkshire in Bloom has now published the full list with the judges’ notes (Yorkshire in Bloom results).
Three of the district’s parks also won platinum, the highest grade in the parks category: Valley Gardens in Harrogate, and Knaresborough Castle and Conyngham Hall in Knaresborough (North Yorkshire Council). Ripon’s Spa Gardens took gold.
The district’s winners
From Yorkshire in Bloom’s discretionary awards and its summaries of results (towns and villages, parks, neighbourhoods and businesses, Golden Rose and Golden Hop):
| Entry | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Harrogate in Bloom | Yorkshire Rose Award, best BID, town or city | Winner |
| Harrogate in Bloom | City or large city | Gold, category winner |
| Harrogate BID | BID, town or city centre | Gold, category winner |
| Starbeck in Bloom | Yorkshire Rose Award, best urban community | Winner |
| Starbeck in Bloom | Urban community | Gold, category winner |
| Starbeck Station | Railway stations | Gold |
| Starbeck Library | It’s Your Neighbourhood | Level 4, Thriving |
| Valley Gardens, Harrogate | Parks and gardens | Platinum |
| Knaresborough Castle | Parks and gardens | Platinum |
| Conyngham Hall, Knaresborough | Parks and gardens | Platinum |
| Ripon Spa Gardens | Parks and gardens | Gold |
| Ripon in Bloom | BID, town or city centre | Gold |
| Ripon in Bloom | Fill Your Boots award | Joint winner |
| Knaresborough in Bloom | Large town | Gold |
| Knaresborough in Bloom | Golden Rose | Five Roses |
| Harrogate Neighbours Cuttings Gardening Club | It’s Your Neighbourhood | Level 5, Outstanding |
| Hookstone and Stonefall Action Group | It’s Your Neighbourhood | Level 5, Outstanding |
| Goldsborough Hall | Medium business | Gold, category winner |
| Rudding Park Hotel | Large business | Gold |
| Blind Jack’s, Knaresborough | Golden Hop (pubs) | Five Hops |
Further out, Spofforth in Bloom, about three miles south of Knaresborough, won Five Roses, and Spofforth’s Millennium Garden was rated Outstanding. Darley in Nidderdale, about eight miles west of Harrogate, won Four Roses. Goldsborough Hall is about two miles east of Knaresborough.
What the judges said
On Harrogate in Bloom, the judges described “a high level of dedication and a significant business and community involvement at all levels”. They said the group was “raising awareness of the need to consider the natural environment”, including water capture and planting chosen for pollinators (judges’ notes, towns and villages).
They left three suggestions:
- a duplicate set of the group’s information boards, now at the West Park Centre, in Valley Gardens
- bug hotels in the garden at the Rogers Almshouses, possibly with pupils from St Peter’s Primary School
- a plot for people with mobility issues or wheelchair users at Harlow Hill Allotments, and then at each allotment site in Harrogate
On Starbeck, the judges wrote that the group had “made Starbeck such a flowery place with so many beautiful tubs and baskets”. They singled out the interpretation boards, the map of Belmont Park available in the library, the station and the library garden.
On Valley Gardens, they called the 17-acre park “one of the most visited public parks in Yorkshire”. The standouts were the World Tree Trail, which they called “a remarkable achievement”, and the refurbished Japanese Garden. Credit went to the council’s staff and the Friends of Valley Gardens volunteers (judges’ notes, parks).
On Knaresborough Castle, they praised the planting around the war memorial and the children’s design flower bed by the bowling green. Their one main suggestion was early talks on tree work, because trees now block views of the river.
Knaresborough in Bloom’s Golden Rose notes credit support from the town’s pubs, naming Blind Jack’s, Thee Groves Inn and The Crown, and the flowers in Greenwoods’ window. The judges suggested more work on the community garden at the Gracious Street junction (judges’ notes, Golden Rose).
What it means for you
Yorkshire in Bloom judges on three things: horticulture, environmental responsibility and community involvement. Almost every entry on this list is run by volunteers.
If you want to help, the groups are local and mostly recruit through their own pages and social media. Harrogate in Bloom, Starbeck in Bloom, Knaresborough in Bloom and Ripon in Bloom all enter every year, and Valley Gardens has its own Friends group.
Cllr Malcolm Taylor, North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for parks and grounds, said: “We would like to congratulate the hard work of our parks team as well as volunteer groups who dedicate their time to keep green spaces tidy.”
Harrogate in Bloom won gold in the national Britain in Bloom competition in 2025, the judges noted. More on the town’s parks and what is on in them is in our things to do in Harrogate guide.
Have your say