Despite the poor weather forecast on Sunday last, the many people celebrating at the Tavistock Sensory Garden Party were blessed with a warm, dry afternoon of fun and music.

The party was opened by mayor of Tavistock Paul Ward, who gave great credit to head gardener Sally Whitfield and her team of volunteers for keeping the garden in such beautiful condition throughout the summer.

‘The gardeners and the trustees of the sensory garden have created a wonderful place, which is a jewel in the crown of Tavistock’, he told the 200 or more partygoers, whilst recalling the far-from-prophetic words of a Britain in Bloom Judge five years ago that the project was far too ambitious and ‘would never get off the ground’.

As well as the beautiful garden, children were treated to games of mini-tennis by the Tavistock Tennis Club, whilst adults played boules in the sensory garden and were invited to taster sessions of bowls by the Sir Francis Drake Bowls Club.

All of this was accompanied by the music of the Tavistock Edge Singers and the Tavy Tars who kept the partygoers singing and clapping all afternoon.

Richard Jones, chairman of the trustees of the sensory garden told the Times: ‘It’s been a wonderful afternoon of music and fun. The volunteers served tea and cakes donated by local businesses and Friends of the Garden, and we sold a great deal of our locally-made merchandise.

‘The real purpose of the party is to share the garden with the people of Tavistock, but it is also our main fundraising event, and the generosity of the people who supported us means that we raised nearly a third of the money needed to run the garden for a whole year.’