A Cotswold garden designer who only recently began her business after a career change has spoken of her delight to win best Fresh Designer for 2024.

Emily Crowley-Wroe, who runs April House Garden Design in Bourton-on-the-Water, scooped the prestigious award at the latest national event held by the Society of Garden Designers.

Emily told Punchline-Gloucester.com that the initial impetus for her garden design business, which is now seeing "steady" demand, came from working in garden centres: "I began to see how people are often "perplexed over how to make the best of their open space."

She added: "I came to garden design late my career, so to win this award so early on in my work is just thrilling!"

Emily's business focus is mostly around the Gloucestershire/Oxfordshire borders, she explained, and the timing of her business, in the wake of the Pandemic, has been fortunate.

She said: "I see that the trends now are towards creating environments for wildlife, focusing on growing produce and perhaps most of all creating space to where people who increasingly work from home can escape. A garden presents endless possibilities to enrich our lives and, given where we are economically and post-Covid, it seems we now value this dimension to our lives far more."

Judges at an award ceremony held last weekend in London said Emily's work was: "A cleverly laid out space that has led to a dramatic transformation and the creation of a very welcoming garden. A bold, seductive design."

The English Garden magazine, picking up on the accolade, told readers that Emily was "one to watch" in 2024.

● Aside from spiritual appeal, the economics of good garden design are also not be disregarded: recent research by the property website Sold suggested that the investment of garden design and landscaping can add up to 20% to the potential value of a home. The website said: "Interestingly, a garden is often thought of as a last option. As long as the grass is green and the weeds don't show, for some, that is enough. However, a garden is often a very useful key to extracting a little more value on your property."