A FRIENDS group is celebrating 20 years of making a difference to their community.

The Friends of Moss Bank Park was formed in June 2001 - when similar groups were not as in vogue as they are now.

Like-minded people had expressed an interest in the park and were invited to attend a meeting by Adrian Norcross, the park’s horticultural manager.

It was agreed they would form a voluntary group with the aim of tackling various problems and working in the walled garden and rock garden.

Group member David Butcher said: “We can sit back and feel like we have done our job to make the town a little prettier and a little nicer. Friends groups were not as popular then as they are now - they were quite uncommon and unheard of, so we did come before the trend a little bit.”

“The best thing to have come out of all of this is the great friends we have made over the years - we have all been there in various ways for each other.”

Some successes include the re-opening of the Rock Garden in 2005 and securing a £49,000 lottery grant in 2012. The grant enabled further improvements around the park, including a new bridge.

Every week around 10 members can be found weeding, pruning, planting and generally helping to keep the gardens tidy, with the group meeting every Tuesday. The group has around 40 members who chip in to help.

Routine work has occasionally been overshadowed by star events such as TV exposure with visits from TV gardeners Carol Klein and Roy Lancaster.

Chairman Anne Cahill said “Some of our members have been with us since 2001 but many others have helped for shorter periods and made a substantial contribution to our work. We are always ready to welcome new volunteers; just roll up and make yourself known.”

For more information on the group, visit facebook.com/fombp or contact Fombp2@gmail.com