Members of the Chatteris in Bloom group have previously won gold at Britain in Bloom and Anglia in Bloom but are fuming after being hit with new “ridiculous” regulations from Cambridgeshire County Council. The volunteers usually hang baskets on around 20 lampposts in the town centre at the end of May as part of their award-winning floral display and judging takes place in July. But this year the council has told them to complete a two-day safety course or hire a contractor to put the baskets in place to “ensure everyone’s safety” because the streetlights are connected to the power grid.
Sue Unwin, 64, president of Chatteris in Bloom, said: “It’s ridiculous, it’s becoming impossible with the bureaucracy and red tape. It’s health and safety gone mad. We’ve been doing this for more than 18 years with no problems. Some jobsworth in the county council has made this decision. We’re all volunteers and none of us have the time of the money to do a course as well as decorate the town, we already give enough of our own time. We’re so fed up, bureaucracy is going to kill our community spirit. We just want to make the town look nice, why can’t they leave us alone to get on with it?”
A Cambridgeshire County Council spokesperson said: "It's great seeing the creative ways that communities across the county make use of streetlights with festive displays. As streetlights are directly connected to the local power grid, to ensure everyone's safety any group wishing to display items from a streetlight needs to get in touch with the council so we can make sure essential independent safety training is completed for everyone's wellbeing. We look forward to hearing from Chatteris in Bloom."
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