In 2025, the Parish Council has entered the villages into the competition and is looking forward to volunteers helping us to make the Parish a prize winner! If you would like to be part of this, please contact the clerk.

In 2024, the Parish Council entered Charlwood into the Parishes In Bloom competition and achieved a silver award. Our thanks to all those who were able to help in the efforts!

The competition is not solely based on chocolate-box picture gardens and is judged and assessed according to three main criteria: Environmental Responsibility; Community Involvement; Gardening and Conservation Achievement.

This is the full criteria as spelled out by the organisers, South & South-East In Bloom:- 

Parishes in Bloom
This is an opportunity for Parishes to receive a visit and be assessed under a simple criteria. To receive an external third-party validation from an organisation that has been assessing and judging Villages, Towns, Cities and community groups for well over 40 years and who is part of Britain in Bloom.
This assessment is designed to cause the least disruption to the business of managing the Parish. Just a question of identifying the many well-managed features that make up a Parish and providing feedback suggesting areas of improvements or developments and of course to receive recognition for the achievements.
What the assessors would like to see:
Community Involvement
• Assessors would like to understand the level of involvement from the community or voluntary groups or individuals especially in the areas of gardening and conservation.
• Are local people involved in decision-making about the appearance of the Parish and how decisions are communicated & implemented?
• The level of partnership working with local groups and local organisations (i.e. police, environmental groups etc.)
Environmental Responsibility
• What action is being taken to conserve the natural & built environment particularly the protection of local habitats, & heritage buildings?
• Examples of local composting either collected wastes or community composting,
• Evidence of the creation or the maintaining or improving green spaces (Village Greens, parks & pocket parks, verges, woodlands, churchyards etc.).
• The Parish Council is engaged in addressing environmental issues such as the control of Fly-tipping, Fly-posting, Litter, Graffiti & Dog fouling.
Maintenance - Gardening, Horticulture & Tree Maintenance, Street Furniture
• Evidence of delivering good gardening, horticultural and tree management practices.
• The Parish Council encourages residents to care for their gardens, allotments, shop and business frontages etc.
• Residential gardens are generally cared for and enhance the parishes appearance.
• Parish signs and entrances are welcoming
• Parish street Furniture (seating, Bins, signage etc) is well maintained.

BT Switch off 

British Telecom has plans to switch off the analogue telephone system and change over to a digital system in all areas this year. The latest date given for this change is 30 June, but this may be postponed. The change will affect households in remote areas which do not currently receive broadband satellite coverage. It will impact people living alone who rely on lanyards for emergency contact following a fall, or other medical emergencies. People who use lanyards and similar safety alerts can be placed on the ‘vulnerable persons’ lists of utility companies. This means that if there is a supply issue, for example a water or power outage, there will be additional services put in place to ensure that they are safe and catered for. There may be similar impacts on other analogue devices in homes, such as Economy 7 heating systems on two meters. It is recommended that residents contact their service providers to ensure that preparations are in place for the switchover.