On Thursday 27 July 2006, Entente Florale Judges from 12 European countries will visit Aughrim to witness a spectacular display of colour and floral decoration.

Entente Florale is an international competition which promotes a greener and more pleasant environment in European towns and villages. In recognition of Aughrim’s high scoring in the National Tidy Towns competition, the village was selected by the Department of Environment, Heritage & Local Government to represent Ireland in the European 2006 Entente Florale Competition.

The route for the judges on Thursday 27 July is in the final stages of preparation but will include a series of walkabouts throughout the village as well as a short bus ride to the outlying areas.

Anyone visiting Aughrim will see evidence of the huge voluntary effort currently underway in preparation for judging day on the 27^th July. Freshly painted buildings, stringent litter collection, the vast array of window boxes and floral displays, all signify the seriousness with which the Aughrim Tidy Towns group is approaching this competition.

The emphasis is now on making sure that Aughrim is looking it’s best when judging takes place on July 27^th as the village will be marked against the following criteria:

• Quality of green spaces, parks etc in terms of planning & cultivation
• Quality of permanent and annual planting
• Use of colour and natural features
• Participation by local community in Entente Florale including participation by local businesses, (e.g. hotels, restaurants, shops, factories), community groups, school groups, and private individuals in terms of their gardens, house fronts etc

The funding for this work is coming from a number of sources including the Department of Environment, Heritage & Local Government, Wicklow County Council and from Aughrim Tidy Towns. The results of the adjudication will be announced at a prize giving ceremony in Germany in September ’06.