The Brickmakers Wood community garden in Ipswich has won the first ever B&Q community garden of the year award.

The garden was previously an unmanaged site, littered rubbish but was transformed into a lush and vibrant space for residents to enjoy by more than 3,000 local volunteers. Judges praised the tangible impact the garden has had on the local area.

Ipswich Star: The garden has been worked on by over 3,000 volunteersThe garden has been worked on by over 3,000 volunteers (Image: COPYRIGHT FREE)

After more than 10,000 volunteer hours, Brickmakers Wood now features lush greens and vibrant colours.

The wild wooded areas have been restored, and ponds have been created.

The judging panel was made up of Royal Horticultural Society experts, Matthew Childs and Humaira Ikram, B&Q Outdoor Category Director, Steve Guy, as well as comedian and gardening enthusiast, Vic Reeve.

Each entry was judged against how the garden had benefitted the local community, as well as the overall design and range of plants used.

Ipswich Star: Judges were extremely pleased with the way in which the Brickmakers Woods serves the local communityJudges were extremely pleased with the way in which the Brickmakers Woods serves the local community (Image: COPYRIGHT FREE)

As winners of the award the Brickmakers Wood received a B&Q green card worth £2,500, as well as an expert consultation session with award-winning garden designers, Matt Childs and Humaira Ikram which took place last week.

Jo Brooks, director of the Community Benefit Society which manage Brickmakers Wood, said: “The community garden has been a huge draw for wildlife and has given people in the area so much enjoyment, allowing everyone to be creative and express themselves.

"The B&Q Community garden of the year competition really gave people a chance to see what our colleagues and volunteers have achieved.

"For us, it was a great opportunity to thank all our lovely volunteers for all their hard work to make our community space what it is.”

Steve Guy, B&Q outdoor category director, said: “At B&Q we want to show everyone that they can do it, and Brickmakers Wood has done just that.

"This beautiful space has been created with 10,000 hours of volunteer work and we can’t wait to see what’s next for this wonderful community space”