THERE was a mixture of joy and disappointment in towns and villages across the region as this year's Anglia in Bloom awards were announced.“Horticultural excellence” was rewarded in Suffolk and Essex with a heap of awards at the competition's prize giving ceremony at the Corn Exchange in Ipswich yesterday .

THERE was a mixture of joy and disappointment in towns and villages across the region as this year's Anglia in Bloom awards were announced.

“Horticultural excellence” was rewarded in Suffolk and Essex with a heap of awards at the competition's prize giving ceremony at the Corn Exchange in Ipswich yesterday .

Karen Kenny, the competition's co-ordinator, said: “The standards of entries have gone from strength to strength. It makes it very hard for the judges to pick the winners but we are very pleased about that as it means there are more and more people working to improve their environments.”

This year's overall winner was Norwich, which scooped first place in another five categories, but locations in Suffolk and Essex also won a number of the categories.

The Frinton Chamber of Commerce Premier Award Group One - open to towns with a population of under 10,000 - went to Brightlingsea. The riverside spot also won the Anglia in Bloom Trophy for the best town.

Felixstowe won the Anglia in Bloom Trophy for the best small coastal resort and won its category for the 'best local' in bloom. It also won the best industrial area in its category with Witham winning in its group.

The winner of the Blooms of Bressingham Trophy for the best large town was Bury St Edmunds. The town was also the overall winner of the County Mulch Awards for the best local authority floral display, with Ipswich winning the award in its category. Ipswich also gained the first prize in its category for the best open space.

Frinton on Sea won the Plantscape Trophy for the best small town and the best open space in a small town.

Newbourne, near Ipswich, won the award for the best small village as well as the trophy for the most improved entry from a village, with Lowestoft winning the most improved category for a coastal resort.

The special award for the best new entry went to Cavendish, which also won the best open space in its group.

Manningtree and Woodbridge won two of the Encams trophies for the places with the least litter and Kelvedon won the trophy for the best conservation project.

Bungay was the winner of the best community project and Sir John Leman School in Beccles scooped first prize in the best school project award.

Val Gilders, chairman of Brightlingsea in Bloom, said this year's competition was particularly satisfying.

“We'd just moved up from small town to town category, so it was a bit of unknown territory. We'd never been up against the likes of Sudbury and Halstead before, although we have seen off Woodbridge in past years,” she said.

David Rees, chairman of the Bury Society and member of the Bury in Bloom Committee, said: “We hoped to win, but we didn't expect to. The whole town has done terribly well in supporting us.

“You can see why the beautifully cared for Abbey Gardens won best municipal gardens. They are internationally renowned.”

Sir John Leman High School in Beccles celebrated winning the Cleanaway Trophy for the Best School Project, which was organised by teacher Sandy Cox.

Headteacher Nigel English said: “It was so long ago I never thought anything like this would happen. It's wonderful, particularly for the children, and they will be thrilled to bits.”

Four regional winners from Anglia in Bloom now go forward to Britain in Bloom, and the winners will be announced on September 30 in London.

Bury St Edmunds will be battling it out in the large town category, Great Yarmouth and Gorleston in the coastal resort category, Brightlingsea representing small towns and Clare in the villages category.

Anglia Bloom is one of 17 In Bloom competitions that form the regional heats of Britain in Bloom, a nation-wide campaign by the Royal Horticultural Society to encourage a more beautiful country. It is an annual competition open to all villages, towns and cities in Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk, Norfolk and Essex.