I READ with interest the article quoting Mitch, the veg man and also the paragraph on your letters page, entitled Make town a tourist destination.

Halstead has, indeed been a leading entrant in the Anglia in Bloom campaign and in recent years the town has also been successful in RHS Britain in Bloom.

In 2014, Halstead was one of only five places to be invited to compete in the Champion of Champions category – and Halstead was given a Gold Award.

Please note that all of these awards come to Halstead, not the volunteer In Bloom team.

So, everyone in the town is Halstead in Bloom, it is not an exclusive club!

We do what we do to promote Halstead, this was always part of our ‘mission statement’ but we do not have the expertise, or the budget, to advertise and attract visitors.

We did spend £70 on an advertisement in the current Anglia in Bloom brochure, and we have some volunteers who are prepared to lead Floral Trail Tours , but so far there has been little take up of this facility.

We also produced a Floral Trail leaflet and copies have been distributed around the region.

We would be very willing to cooperate in any promotion of Halstead as a tourist destination and would welcome anyone who wants to join with the In Bloom effort.

In 2017, Halstead will enter Anglia in Bloom and also take part in RHS Britain in Bloom, and we will be proud to take judges from both campaign around Halstead.

Julia Smith Secretary, Halstead in Bloom Sible Hedingham