Ballinahown leads the way as westmeaths tidiest village

Ballinahown has once again won the County Westmeath award at the national Tidy Towns competition.

The results of the competition, in conjunction with SuperValu,were announced today.

The overall winner is Letterkenny, which secured 323 points.

Ballinahown was just nine points behind, with 314 points. This was an increase of three points on their tally last year.

In addition to securing the county honours, Ballinahown also won a silver medal.

It increased a point in three categories, compared to last year: built environment and streetscape; wildlife, habitats and natural amenities and sustainable waste and resource management, while one point was lost in the landscaping and open spaces category.

Athlone also increased its points from 275 last year to 281 this year.

It increased one point in each of six categories and remained static in two categories: sustainable waste and resource management and wildlife habitats and natural amenities.

Other increases across the county included Glasson (+6 to 288), Tyrrellspass (+8 to 296) and Rosemount (+10 to 272).

Tyrrellspass increased by four points in the sustainable waste and resource management category, while Glasson increased by one point in each of six categories: tidiness and litter control; residential streets and housing areas; approach roads, streets and lanes; sustainable waste and resource management; community involvement and planning and the built environment and streetscapes.

Hundreds of members of tidy towns committees across the country attended the event, held at Dublin City University.