A special Good News story

Regular readers will know that the Audlem Online webteam enjoys milestones. Two months ago, we celebrated our fifth birthday on-line. Today, it's the turn of our 5,000th news item – not bad for 'quiet' rural south Cheshire!

You can by the way, if you have a year or two to spare, catch up on every one of the 5,000 stories by clicking on to the 'News' page – they are available by Year, Month and Day in the News Archive. Happy reading!

So what better way to celebrate our 5,000th than with a 'Good News' story – the judges' comments about Audlem as it won the Cheshire Community Pride competition for the fifth year in a row. Yet again, the best kept village in the whole county of Cheshire and, note, a theme is developing – everything's in fives!

The judges say:1. Appearance of shops, including window displays, condition of paved areas and parking areas: The shops are a very attractive feature in the village. Their window displays were neat, interesting and informative. Virtually all shop frontages were clean and tidy. Paved areas and parking areas were well-maintained. 2. Bus shelters, telephone kiosks, public toilets, playgrounds, notice boards, public car parks, exterior of schools: The bus shelter/Buttermarket was pristine. The public toilets, though housed in an old building, were extremely clean inside and the outside area was also clean and free of debris. School approaches too were tidy and litter free. Notice boards displayed up to date information in a clear and ordered manner. The public car park was clean and tidy except on one occasion when rubbish had been left by the recycling bins. 3. Public houses and surrounding commercial premises and medical centres, village halls, other meeting places and their surroundings: The public houses had pleasant frontages enhanced by plenty of colourful flower displays. They were mostly tidy and litter free. However, refuse areas by the Bridge Inn which are clearly visible to the passing public were untidy and littered with debris. The medical centre and its surrounding were tidy and clean. Even while improvements were being carried out on an exterior wall, the frontage of the Public Hall remained free of litter. 4. Sports and social clubs, war memorials, other memorials and artefacts. Churchyards, cemeteries, parks and allotments, gardens, children's play areas: The exterior of the bowling green and the tennis courts were extremely well maintained. There was some ugly weed growth behind the tennis hut which did house some litter. The War Memorial, the historical artefacts and the monument, like the Buttermarket, were all in excellent condition. The churchyard, the cemetery and their adjacent areas were immaculate. So too was the children's play area by the tennis courts. 5. Tidiness of verges, hedges, traffic islands, floral displays, ponds, streams, canals: Verges and hedges were neatly trimmed. Canal verges had been cut back, enabling easy access along the canal pathways. Beautiful floral displays outside shops, pubs and private dwellings were an added attraction. Those within the Crown Building area were particuarly appealing. 6. Litter bins, graffiti, chewing gum, dog fouling, weeds: Litter bins were well placed and plentiful. They were regularly emptied by the lengthsman. Perhaps one placed strategically inside the Green Pavilion (thought to be the Teen Shelter) might be a good idea. Graffiti, though confined solely to the interior of this pavilion remained an issue. This is large, ugly, and does not go unnoticed by visitors to any one of the recreational areas close by.

Unwanted weeds were kept at bay except for those fringing the paths by the Bridge, which needs attention.

Audlem is a charming village. It is well cared for by the community who are striving to ensure it is a delightful place in which to live and work or simply to visit.

This article is from our news archive. As a result pictures or videos originally associated with it may have been removed and some of the content may no longer be accurate or relevant.