Friendliest street to be rewarded with Eden Project garden to mark coronation

Organisers of the Coronation Big Lunch are looking for communities that have gone above and beyond to help others to mark the crowning of the King.

Residents of Murrayfield Drive in Edinburgh sit down to a Jubilee street party in 2012 (Andrew Milligan/PA) (PA Archive)

A campaign has been launched to find the UK’s friendliest street to mark the coronation, with the winners set to receive a garden designed by the Eden Project.

Organisers behind the Coronation Big Lunch, which forms part of the celebrations for the crowning of the King in May, are searching for a community – whether a cul-de-sac or a block of flats – that has gone above and beyond to support those around them.

Peter Stewart, chief purpose officer at the Eden Project, which is overseeing the Coronation Big Lunch, said: “Life hasn’t been easy these past few years, but friendly, kind communities in the UK have kept us going.

“A coronation marks an important moment in our shared history.”

The pollinator and people-friendly garden will be paid for and installed by horticultural experts from the Eden Project eco-attraction in Cornwall.

It will be designed to allow residents to connect with each other and with nature, in honour of the King and the Queen Consort’s passion for communities and the environment, the Coronation Big Lunch said.

The prize will also include a coronation hamper – packed with bunting, tea towels, stickers and a £250 Iceland voucher – and £2,500 to support the group’s next community project.

Mr Stewart added: “By honouring the friendliest communities in this coronation year, we shine a light on those people who are collaborating and shaping better futures, crowning them as examples we could emulate.

“The rewards will help communities take the next step in taking their ideas forward to benefit the wider community and by gifting the overall winner a garden, we help that community to connect together and with nature, which we know has huge value for community and individual wellbeing.”

The Queen Consort has been patron of the Big Lunch since 2013.

Tens of thousands of street parties are expected to be staged during the coronation weekend, with people urged to come together across the nation for the Coronation Big Lunch on Sunday May 7.

Applicants for the garden will need demonstrate a community need or benefit and a suitable planting site.

Three runners-up will win a Coronation Big Lunch hamper including a £100 Iceland voucher, as well as £1,000 towards a community project.

Applications can be made via edenprojectcommunities.com/coronation-communities and nominations close at the end of March.