Service users on Community Payback have been praised for helping Boston in its bid to win gold for the fourth year running in this year’s East Midlands in Bloom large town category.

Alison Fairman, chairman of Boston in Bloom Partnership said: “I would like to place on record our appreciation to Humberside Lincolnshire & North Yorkshire CRC and the Community Payback team for their ongoing support and, in particular, their recent assistance with the Boston in Bloom preparations.

“At the recent presentation to the East Midlands in Bloom judge we emphasised the huge debt of gratitude that we owed Community Payback. The team’s help with maintaining areas such as the community garden and Pilgrim’s Patch has been essential to presenting the town and its green spaces in a positive light, while at the same time making them far more inviting to the community.

“We have been impressed by Humberside Lincolnshire & North Yorkshire CRC’s ability to be flexible, helping with projects such as the Art Deco style garden and the bog garden, often at short notice.

Community Payback in Lincolnshire is managed by the Humberside, Lincolnshire & North Yorkshire Community Rehabilitation Company (HLNY CRC) and aims to rehabilitate offenders through working on projects, nominated by members of the public, that benefit the community.

Nigel Harris, community payback placement coordinator, said: “HLNY CRC and Boston in Bloom work closely in partnership deploying offenders on Community Payback on several projects across the town.

“Our work on Boston in Bloom is a good example of how service users can put something back into the community while learning essential work and life skills which will improve their chances of employment.”

The offenders on Community Payback working on Boston In Bloom projects were managed by community supervisors Rob Lamb and Jane Atkinson.

*The Community Payback Team in Humberside, Lincolnshire and North Yorkshire would like to hear about other projects which residents think will make a real difference to their community. Nominate a project for Community Payback