Tenby is hoping to use flower power to help win an international competition which features winners from all over the world from various floral and environmental programmes.

The 'Communities in Bloom' competition, held by a Canadian non-profit organisation, sees an international challenge involving communities from the USA, Europe and Asia, being evaluated on the accomplishments of their entire community, with key criteria such as - tidiness, environmental action, heritage conservation, urban forestry, landscape, turf and groundcovers, floral displays and community involvement, being assessed by judges.

"Since the launch of Communities in Bloom in 1995, we have often had to explain that the programme was not just about flowers. As we all know, this programme is about getting people involved in making their community a better place in which to live, work, and visit," said the organisation's chair, Claudette Savaria.

Tenby in Bloom chairman, Clr. Mrs. Sue Lane, who will be spearheading the town's campaign, said it was a huge honour for the resort to be invited to take part in the competition.

"We will be the only UK entrant and it's a wonderful chance to highlight Tenby internationally, now that we've officially entered this competition," she said.

"It's normally only gold winners of the Britain In Bloom contest that get put into this competition, so we're proud to be representing our town, Wales and the whole of Britain.

"We need a big commitment from everybody in the community to promote Tenby and we need to work together for the benefit of the town," continued Clr. Mrs. Lane, who recently became an ambassador for gardening charity, the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), where she will play a part in mentoring other 'in bloom' areas and be giving motivational talks to different communities in her role.

The Tenby In Bloom committee will be once again working alongside Pembrokeshire County Council and Tenby Town Council, as they have done for the Britain In Bloom contests in the past, to prepare for the Communities in Bloom competition.

Clr. Mrs. Lane has once again urged the people of Tenby to get involved in any way possible to increase the town's chances of achieving success in the event.

"A large segment of the competition's criteria involves the community, so we want any ideas and anyone willing to help physically in any way to come forward and get on board," she continued.

"We will be starting the weeding groups again once the weather gets a bit warmer and there will be possible painting work and odd jobs that will need to be undertaken around the town, so however big or small, every little thing will play a part.

"The judges from Communities in Bloom will be in town some time in July or August for a couple of days, and they could be from any part of the world, so we need to make a big push to make sure that the town is in tip-top condition going into the summer," added Clr. Mrs. Lane.

The awards will be presented during the Communities in Bloom National Awards and Symposium which are held in Ottawa from October 23 to 26. International finalists are provided with promotional opportunities during the event.

Tenby In Bloom are also on the lookout for someone with good IT and design knowledge to volunteer their services in helping create a website where they can raise their profile and display their past achievements in previous Bloom events.

Anyone who would like to help in any way is asked to contact Clr. Mrs. Lane on 01834 845680 or Tenby Town Council on 01834 842730.

They can also email the town council offices at [email protected]">[email protected]