News MBC and Maidstone Hospital Recognising Key Workers
Maidstone Borough Council (MBC) and Maidstone Hospital have joined forces to recognise all key workers across the borough who have continued to work during Covid19.
Everyone from teachers, supermarket staff, volunteers, NHS staff, the emergency services and MBC teams have been doing an amazing job during challenging times. Communities have also pulled together, from collecting shopping and medicines for those shielding to people standing on their doorsteps clapping for key workers to show their appreciation for all their hard work.
To ensure the borough’s amazing response to the pandemic is recognised year after year, the Council and Hospital have worked together to create a rainbow bulb garden and wild-flower meadow. MBC’s Grounds Maintenance and Park team have prepared the ground and planted over 18,000 bulbs in a flower garden at Maidstone Hospital which will bloom in spring - around the anniversary of the start of the pandemic, and the wild-flower meadow will be in bloom throughout the summer. The gardens will add colour and help attract bees and other wildlife.
Miles Scott, Chief Executive of Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust, said:
“I am extremely proud of the way our staff responded to the pandemic and I know they have been very grateful for all the help and support they have received from the local community – from schools and local businesses to individuals, it has been truly amazing.“Planting a rainbow bulb garden and a wild-flower meadow is a wonderful way of marking the pandemic in the long term and I, along with the rest of the Trust are pleased to be involved with this initiative.”
The Council Grounds Maintenance and Parks team have worked hard on the gardens in the grounds of Maidstone Hospital to ensure that they make an impact for staff, patients and visitors.
Alison Broom, Maidstone Borough Council Chief Executive added:
“There are so many people across the borough in so many different roles from the NHS to supermarket workers, MBC waste services to teachers, they all continued working throughout the pandemic and we wanted to let them know that we are so very grateful for everything they have done.“These flower gardens are just a small token of appreciation, but we hope they will remind everyone of the difference these key workers made and continue to make to our everyday lives.”
MBC is also inviting everyone who can, to create their own flower garden – it doesn’t matter what size big or small to celebrate all key workers. Whether it is a piece of land, a small garden patch, flowerpot or window box, whatever you can do to commemorate their work would be great and we’d love to see them! Please send your pictures to us so that we can share them on our social media channels and in the next edition of the MBC resident magazine - Borough Insight: competition@maidstone.gov.uk with the subject heading Keyworker Garden.