Dame Mary Smieton Award

Dame Mary Smieton was a civil servant known for her combination of practicality, courtesy and charm.  She became only the second woman to head a government department, when she was appointed permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education in 1959.  She spent time at the Public Records Office, Ministry of Labour, the Home Office and as Director of Personnel at the United Nations when it was first formed after World War 2. She was also a benefactor of The Wildlife Trusts. 

This annual award is given to a Wildlife Trust that has contributed significantly to an outstanding research (now EDI) project which has made an invaluable contribution to the strategic work of The Wildlife Trust and its mission.  

The Greenhouse Project at Witton Country Park in Blackburn has been awarded the Dame Mary Smieton Award for its work in using nature as a prescription for mental and physical health issues.

Since the renovation of the greenhouse in 2021, the project has engaged over a thousand local people and a wide network of partners and is recognised locally as being exceptional for the diversity of people engaged. Lots of regular proactive outreach takes place including work with carers, sessions for South Asian asylum seekers and refugees, Eid celebrations, art groups, Ukrainian refugee groups, nature and wellbeing groups, and home education sessions

Find out more about this wonderful project here: The Greenhouse Project | The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside (lancswt.org.uk)