Sanctuary Scotland residents from the Ardler Estate in Dundee have been celebrating after helping the estate scoop silver in the Beautiful Scotland awards.

Thanks to the work of residents and volunteers from the Ardler Village Trust, the estate came second in the Urban Community category of the competition, behind winners Uddingston.

The award for Ardler continues from previous successes in the competition for the estate which has won first prize in the Regeneration category for the last three years.

The Ardler Village Trust was established in 2002 by Sanctuary Scotland, a subsidiary of Sanctuary Group, in partnership with Dundee City Council, the Ardler community and other partners in the Ardler project. The aim of the Trust was to establish a vehicle to promote social, community and economic regeneration to complement the physical regeneration carried out on the project.

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Judges toured the estate and awarded points for various environmental categories including cleanliness and the horticultural maintenance of the area. Points were also awarded for the work of the Ardler Village Trust to promote initiatives for waste minimisation, re-cycling and involving children from local schools in eco-initiatives to help make Ardler a more beautiful place.

The judges were particularly impressed with the degree that partners including Sanctuary Scotland and Dundee City Council, and residents work together on projects in the area to help with the continued regeneration of the estate.

The award for Ardler continues from previous successes in the competition for the estate which has won first prize in the Regeneration category for the last three years.

Sanctuary Scotland tenants Margaret Rourke and Ina Anderson collected the silver prize on behalf of the Ardler Estate during the competition’s awards ceremony at Brunton Hall, Musselburgh.

Alistair Macleod, Ardler Village Trust manager, said: "This award recognises the hard work of everyone who has been involved in improving Ardler’s environment this year.

"This includes local residents who have put such effort into their gardens as well as our partners including Sanctuary Scotland, Dundee City Council, local schools and groups. A silver award is a fantastic achievement and we would like to build on it next year."

(GK/JM)