Otley in Bloom is a local volunteer group which has been working in Otley, West Yorkshire since 2001 to improve the public green spaces in the town. We are a small group of people living in and around Otley who care passionately about our town environment. We work closely with other groups to raise awareness of green and environmental issues and help to build a real sense of civic pride in our town. Otley is a great place. Set in the picturesque Yorkshire Dales it enjoys many features and amenities which rightly make it not only a tourist attraction but also a much sought after place to live. Otley in Bloom is open to all residents, businesses and friends of Otley. The group meets formally once a month to co-ordinate projects and initiatives, and informally throughout the year at various clean ups, project days and visits. Otley in Bloom aims and, we believe, largely succeeds in developing public green spaces around the town to be enjoyed by all - both residents and visitors alike. We identify opportunities and carry out projects to develop areas into green and floral public spaces. The group also aims to develop work that is sustainable. Otley in Bloom liaises with groups, individuals and agencies, to improve the environment of Otley as a whole town. There are four main areas in which we work:   We take great pride in our town and look for ways to improve its green spaces. Some of the time we take on the task ourselves - either to clear up overgrown or untidy corners in a 'hands on' way - or we work with Leeds City Council Parks and Countryside to tackle the larger jobs.   Read more... We work with Otley Town Council to prepare the town for our annual entry into the Spring and Summer 'Yorkshire in Bloom' competitions. We've been very successful at this and in 2005 we were awarded Second Place in the Spring and First Place in the Summer. This placed us Second overall in the Large Town category in the regional 'In Bloom' competition. In 2006 and 2007 we were given a 'Silver' award.   Read more... We also look further ahead for the town and make plans and recommendations about how the environment of the town could be developed. One recent example of this was the 'Otley Town Enhancement Study' which we commissioned during 2004 and early 2005. The final report from this study collected together the ideas and aspirations of many groups working for Otley. We're pleased that this study is now being used by several major organisations to plan Otley's future development.   Read more... Using the 'Town Enhancement Study' we're also bidding for funds from several sources in order to get some of the exciting projects underway ourselves. We're working with local groups like the Otley & Yorkshire Dales Branch of the Dry Stone Wallers Association to really make a difference to the way the town looks.   Read more... Sponsorship:   Otley in Bloom is fortunate to have many sponsors in the local community. We're pleased to have financial help from Otley Town Council, Otley Chamber of Trade, Otley Churches Together, Otley Carnival Committee, Otley Rotary Club and generous donations from many local businesses. We've also had help from some of the larger organisations like Yorkshire Forward and in addition we have close links with the Otley Town Partnership.   Read more... Why not get involved yourself! We're always happy to greet new members - and you'll make some new friends at the same time as making Otley a better place to live. We meet in the Otley Courthouse Arts Centre at 7:00 on the first Tuesday of every month. Come down and meet the group, hear about what's going on and tell us what you'd like to see happen with Otley's green spaces. Whatever you're good at is likely to be useful - perhaps you'd like to join our Task Force and get to grips with the actual planting and managing the flower displays - perhaps you'd like to help with the competition entries - maybe you want to work on the project management of some of the larger ideas we have. All of these areas need some more people to drive the group forward and enhance the town's appearance. Come and join us - you can make a difference.   Contact us...   Otley in Bloom - working with the business community and the people of Otley to make our town a greener place to live. Home | About the Group | Awards | Sponsors | Grants | Yorkshire in Bloom Calendar | Current Projects | Task Force | Constitution | Notices | Downloads Otley Town Enhancement Study | Gallery | Meeting minutes | Links | Contact