WARRINGTON Borough Council is celebrating after winning more Green Flag Awards than Manchester and Liverpool combined.

The authority achieved recognition for all 12 of the sites, including Walton Hall and Gardens and Lymm Dam, for which it applied earlier this year.

The awards are judged by more than 700 green space experts, who volunteer their time to visit applicant sites and assess them against eight 'strict criteria' covering horticultural standards, cleanliness, sustainability and community involvement.

Manchester City Council was awarded six prestigious flags, Wigan four, Halton three, Liverpool two and St Helens one.

Cllr Tony Higgins, executive board member for culture, leisure and community, praised all those involved for their efforts.

He said: "We are delighted to have done so well in this nationally recognised award scheme.

"The teams responsible have done a fantastic job to get such a large number of sites up to this extremely high standard."

Warrington's winners were Walton Hall and Gardens, Lymm Dam, Risley Moss Nature Reserve, St Peters Park, Alexandra Park, Bewsey Park, St Elphin's Park, Fox Covert Cemetery, Hollinfare Cemetery, Warrington Cemetery, Walton Lea Crematorium and Burtonwood Cemetery.

The Green Flag Award scheme has been labelled as the 'benchmark national standard' for parks and green spaces in the UK.

It was first launched in 1996 to recognise and reward the best green spaces in the country.

For further information visit warrington.gov.uk/waltongardens or greenflagaward.org.uk