A VOLUNTARY group from a Herefordshire town are celebrating after being given a top award.

Leominster in Bloom have been awarded a gold award in the latest Heart of England in Bloom competition.

The ‘town’ category award was presented at the regional ceremony at the Tally Ho Club in Birmingham.

This year’s theme was a celebration of the heritage of the Ryeland sheep in Leominster, along with red, white and blue planting to celebrate the late Queen's platinum jubilee.

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The town was overrun with sheep of all different shapes and sizes.

Local schools and disability charity ECHO provided decorated woolly creatures that filled shops, the library, the Buttercross Arcade and many barriers around the town centre.

There was a children’s sheep trail that included nearly all the shops.

The flowers are sponsored by many businesses in and around the town, and the exceptional plants were grown and planted by Philpotts Nursery.

A spokesperson for Leominster Town Council said that the displays produced by the volunteers were truly amazing, especially considering the hot weather they endured, and the town has really looked fantastic all summer.

Chairman Geoffrey Crofts said: "The hard-working core group of volunteers devote many hours to planning and co-ordinating everything, and this award is truly well deserved.

"We work with a large number of local groups, individuals and clubs who all help us attain these results, and this award is for all of them as well."