A talented young gardener working at The Auckland Project, a regeneration charity and collection of visitor attractions in Bishop Auckland, has won an award for Young Horticulturist of the Year. 

In a closely fought competition, Lucy Whitehead was awarded the accolade by the Chartered Institute of Horticulture for the third year running and will represent the ‘Northern’ category at the national grand final held on May 9. 

At the grand final, Lucy will compete for a £2,500 travel bursary, designed to fund the winner's horticultural-related travel to any part of the world, enhancing their knowledge, honing new skills and diversifying their knowledge by seeing non-native plants.

Previous winners have visited Borneo, New Zealand, South Africa and the Galapagos Islands with their winnings. 

Lucy said: “The competition is always a highlight of my year and it is great to meet young people in horticulture from such a wide range of sectors, including historic gardening, community allotments and research.  

“My participation has pushed me to expand my knowledge and to engage with the everyday work in the gardens here at Auckland Castle in a more meaningful way. I'm proud to have won the regional finals and to represent the Northern chapter for the third time at the grand final at Hestercombe House in May.” 

As part of her role at The Auckland Project, Lucy ensures the parkland and gardens are well-tended and looking their best for visitors. This involves pruning plants, digging new flower beds, propagating, growing seedlings and watering. 

The award comes at a special time as The Auckland Project finishes the multi-million-pound redesign of its Walled Garden, Faith Garden, Broadwalk, Wilderness Garden and new glasshouse, all due to open in early summer.   

The enormous glasshouse will house everything that is subsequently planted in the Walled Garden, remaining true to its historic purpose of growing fruit and vegetables that are shared across the community, as well as propagating plants and seedlings. 

The Walled Garden, designed in collaboration with renowned designer Pip Morrison, will be lined with visually stunning flower beds, introducing an array of colours, textures and scents that will flood the senses and provide inspiration to everyone from gardening novices to the experienced horticulturist. 

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Located next to the newly opened Faith Museum, the Faith Garden is designed for reflection, which sees neat and pleasant lines complemented by trees in a grid formation. There’s a stone sett paving recognising the footprint of Bishop Bek’s Chapel, discovered during recent archaeological works at Auckland Castle. 

Andy Nesbitt, head curator of park and gardens and landscapes at The Auckland Project, added: “I was over the moon to hear Lucy had achieved Young Horticulturist of the Year for the third year running. It’s a huge achievement and everyone in the team is extremely proud of her.  

“At The Auckland Project, we are passionate about teaching and employing the next generation of talented gardeners. They will take over the responsibilities of caring for such a precious place, whilst pushing the boundaries of design and creativity.”