Unique green award for holiday parks company

Graham Hodgson, David Bellamy and Ian Gaskell

Environmental campaigner David Bellamy has this week recognised a Lake District holiday parks company as one of the most environmentally friendly in the UK.

South Lakeland Parks operates four sites in stunning Lake District countryside and have held prestigious David Bellamy Gold award status at each park for a total of 24 years.

Directors attended a top awards ceremony in London to be presented with a special certificate by the country’s best known botanist who was recognising those which have shown a long-standing commitment to the environment.

Dr Bellamy said he was “absolutely amazed,” when he discovered just how much was being done by the parks which provide luxury holiday homes and caravans.

He said: “South Lakeland Parks has created an oasis of wildlife which has really got me excited. Parks like this are creating wildlife wonderlands and it’s time they were given well-deserved recognition for their environmental commitment.”

South Lakeland Parks’s winning parks are the five-star Fallbarrow; Bowness-on-Windermere, White Cross Bay, Windermere; Limefitt in the Troutbeck Valley and Gatebeck near Kendal. Fallbarrow Park has held a gold award the longest – 10 years.

The Windermere sites are in native woodland and resident deer, squirrels and rabbits can be found. The parks are also a popular nesting site for ducks and swans. Last year Fallbarrow displayed artificial silk daffodils to illustrate climate change in the Lake District. The company’s eco charity is Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s Water Vole project.

Graham Hodgson, Chief Executive of South Lakeland Parks, said: “We are delighted to receive this kind of recognition for the work that goes into complimenting and  preserving the natural environment of our parks. They are situated in the most stunning locations which is why conservation has been top of our agenda for many years.”