Is BALI a true representation of UK landscaping?

First of all well done to those winning a BALI award last Friday - here is the full list of BALI National Landscape Awards Principal Winners.

I have taken a detailed look at the companies who took the top awards and I am gobsmacked at the dearth of small to medium sized domestic landscapers or garden maintenance companies being represented by the UK landscaping industry.

Let me make it clear - every one of these companies appears to be well run and highly professional but what is also clear is that there are no small landscape, design or garden maintenance companies who do their business dealing with the 'man in the street'.

One man bands, partnerships, family run and proprietor run business are clearly absent. BALI makes a spurious claim that it represents the whole of the landscape industry and by doing so I feel it continues to damage our industry.

BALI membership is dropping and is far from the 700 members it lays claim to and I feel it is about time - after-all, they do profess to demand very high standards among its members - they started to talk honestly about their membership numbers, who they represent and above all, how many businesses that are not part of the BALI show.

Lets take a look at the list:

• Grand Award Winner - Water Gems (Alba)
• Domestic Garden Scheme: Construction Cost Less Than £20,000 - Olivebay Ltd
• Domestic Garden Scheme: Construction Cost Between £20,000 and £50,000 - Garden Builders
• Domestic Garden Scheme: Construction Cost Between £50,000 and £100,000 - Hillier Landscapes
• Domestic Garden Scheme: Construction Cost Between £100,000 and £250,000 - Water Gems (Alba)
• Domestic Garden Scheme: Construction Cost Over £250,000 - Thompson Landscapes
• Domestic Garden Scheme: Maintenance Only - Hambrook Landscapes
• Soft landscaping: Under one hectare - Frosts Landscape Construction
• Soft Landscaping: Over 1 hectare - Veolia Environmental Services
• Hard Landscaping: Under £300,000 - Blakedown Landscapes (South-East)
• Hard Landscaping: Between £300,000 and £1.5m - Blakedown Landscapes (South-East)
• Hard Landscaping: Over £1.5m - McKean & Company (Glasgow)
• Land Renewal and Regeneration Scheme - Sureset
• International Award - Beijing Tsinghua Urban Planning & Design Institute
• Landscape Design Excellence Award - Principal Winner: Andy Sturgeon
• Best Use of Lighting Award - Thompson Landscapes
• Grounds Maintenance: Single Sites - Enterprise plc
• Grounds Maintenance: Multiple Sites - Reliance Landscapes
• Grounds Maintenance of Business & Private Grounds Reliance Landscapes
• Interior Landscaping Installation - OCS Horticulture
• Interior Landscaping: Maintenance Planters Horticulture PHS Greenleaf
• Rainwater Harvesting - Frosts Landscape Construction
• Best Newcomer - Harlequin Landscapes
• Community Involvement - Visible Changes
• Special Award: Recycled Materials - CR Swift Landscaping
• Employer of the Year Award - Grace Landscapes