Carlops Parish Church (Church of Scotland) is the first congregation to be awarded a Gold Award under our revised awards scheme. This is a considerable achievement as the standards set for the new Gold Award are extremely high.

The application described a wide-ranging and interesting variety of action embedded in the life of
the congregation.

The assessors particularly identified the following for commendation:

• the thorough approach to planning, implementation and ongoing evaluation of your
  Development Plan
• the regular inclusion of environmental concerns in worship
• the cooperation with the Community Council and Village Centre Management Committee
• the circulation of the Church Newsletter to all homes within the parish
• their proactive approach to recycling, responsible travel and energy use
• their charity work and promoting Fair Trade and Christian Aid
• their patio-garden project, another example of working with others to benefit the community
• the involvement of the congregation in lobbying MPs and MSPs, to express opinion on issues
  such as Climate Chaos, Global Poverty and Climate Justice
• the overall impression of an imaginative and creative church, fully committed to environmental
  issues

Congratulations to everyone at Carlops for this significant achievement which recognises lots of hard work over many years.