Date: 30 September 2025

York Museum Gardens wins Platinum Award for second year running in prestigious Yorkshire in Bloom Competition 

Last week York Museum Gardens celebrated a Best in Category and Platinum Award at Yorkshire in Bloom. This prestigious competition is part of Britain in Bloom in association with the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS).  

RHS Britain in Bloom is the largest horticultural campaign in Europe and grows every year, winning the category for Yorkshire Rose Parks, Cemeteries, and Gardens is a significant accolade for York Museum Gardens. For the second year running, Yorkshire in Bloom has recognised the hard work of the Garden Team and their dedication to keeping the gardens looking beautiful.  

Since the last award, the Garden Team have made significant developments throughout the different garden spaces. The wildflower meadow was brought back to the Artists Garden for another year, providing a calming space for visitors to enjoy as well as refuge for insects and pollinators through the dry summer months. The team also extended their work with York Art Gallery, planting ‘living art’ which used colourful plants and flowers to recreate one of Harland Miller’s famous letter paintings, ‘Far Out’, which hung inside the Art Gallery from March to August 2025.  

The Garden Team have also been hard at work in other areas of garden life this year. From running weekly guided tours, renovating flower beds, developing a mini heritage apple orchard, growing plants and collecting seeds to sell in the Yorkshire Museum and York Art Gallery gift shops, as well as community birdwatching to monitor all the different species, there’s been plenty of seasonal activity. York Museum Gardens also hosted Futuresound for the second year of concerts with headliners such as Elbow and Nile Rodgers and Chic, offering unique experiences to residents and visitors alongside a range of other community events. Later this year, Echoes of Yorkshire, an immersive installation of light and sound by internationally acclaimed Luxmuralis, will illuminate the iconic St Mary’s Abbey and Yorkshire Museum.  

Steve Williams, Garden Manager at York Museums Trust said: “We are so grateful to have received recognition from Yorkshire in Bloom again this year. The hard work of all our staff and volunteers throughout the year has contributed to the beautiful green spaces in the heart of urban York that are enjoyed by over a million people each year. The team not only focus on the aesthetics of the garden but also sustaining the varied wildlife and plant life that call the garden home. We strive to build biodiversity, create habitats and contribute to the City of York by offering a relaxing environment for wellbeing and where the local community can come together. We couldn’t achieve this success without the support from our colleagues, all of whom understand the importance of our wonderful green space.”