Three horticulture students at Wiltshire College & University Centre have been honoured by the Wiltshire Gardens Trust for their dedication to developing their gardening skills.
The Wiltshire Gardens Trust Horticulture Education Award is given every year for education and training that will enhance a student’s scope to continue learning and fulfil their future career goals in horticulture.
Applicants for the award must have achieved a horticulture qualification from the college’s Lackham campus, either as an apprentice or through an RHS certificate. They must also demonstrate a commitment to improving their understanding, knowledge and skills, while pursuing a career in horticulture – whether as a gardener, garden designer, landscape architect, groundskeeper or nursery technician.
The three award winners for 2025 are Stuart Warnock-Coles and Emma Strange, who studied RHS Level 2 Practical and Theory, and Saffron Barlow, who completed a Level 2 horticulture apprenticeship.
They were presented with certificates and £500 towards their further studies by Wiltshire Gardens Trust chair Camilla Ritchie at the organisation’s AGM in Edington.
She said: “We are delighted to be supporting Wiltshire College’s horticulture students on their paths to careers in gardening and horticulture.
“We congratulate each of the award winners on their success. Our thanks to the Lackham tutors, Sarah Moor-Bardell and Gemma Neech, who helped promote the award to their students and to all of those who applied. There was a very strong field.”
The awards were judged by Sarah Rivett-Carnac and Alexandra Gray, and co-ordinated by grants and awards team lead Victoria Nye.
Stuart moved from a career in the travel industry to pursue his passion for horticulture and now works at Longleat alongside running his own business. He hopes to develop his garden design skills.
Saffron is nearing the end of her apprenticeship at Hartham Park and has a particular interest in growing vegetables, with ambitions to learn more about herbalism.
Emma is self-employed with a number of clients and will use her award to build her knowledge of garden design.
The trust has a long-standing relationship with the college and is looking forward to running the scheme again next year. Its members give talks at Lackham and welcome students into their gardens for study days, as part of its aim to encourage more people into horticulture careers.
For more information, visit wiltshiregardenstrust.org.uk or wiltshire.ac.uk.
