Coventry University given Green Flag International Award

Coventry University will once again fly the Green Flag International Award after being given the prestigious accolade for the quality of its green spaces for the 11th year running.

The 2024 award, which is the international quality mark for parks and green spaces, has been handed to the university every year since 2014 and the latest success follows an assessment of its management plan and a site inspection judging on almost 30 separate criteria including biodiversity, conservation and sustainability.

Keep Britain Tidy’s Green Flag Award Scheme Manager, Paul Todd MBE:

“I would like to congratulate everyone involved at Coventry University on achieving a Green Flag Award. The university is a vital green space for communities in Coventry to socialise, enjoy nature and it provides important opportunities for park users to improve their physical and mental health. We know that staff work tirelessly to ensure that we maintain the high standards of the Green Flag Award, everyone involved should feel extremely proud of their achievement.

“It is important that our free-to-use spaces are maintained to the Green Flag Award standard, making them accessible for all members of the community while ensuring the environment is protected.”

Starley Gardens at Coventry University

Earlier this year Coventry University opened its new Peace Gardens with the unveiling of a new Phoenix Tree sculpture where the Alan Berry building once stood. The new garden allows for uninterrupted views from Coventry Cathedral down to the Delia Derbyshire building, the home of the university’s art and design courses.

The campus is also home to Starley Gardens, an ideal spot to pause and take a break, and an edible garden which is used as a pollinator hub and consists of vegetables, fruit and herbs that showcase the growing and use of food for students, staff and visitors, as well as allowing users to harvest crops at the appropriate time.

Professor John Latham CBE, Vice-Chancellor of Coventry University:

“Our city centre campus is not only for our students and colleagues; it is for everyone who comes to, and travels through, Coventry. Our outdoor spaces are just as important as our lecture halls and classrooms and we are delighted to once again be awarded the Green Flag Internation Award which we shall fly with pride.”

The Green Flag Award scheme, managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy under licence from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of green spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.