Fenland Business Awards: The Secret Garden Touring Park wins Judges' Prestige Award

"We have a very successful business model and it is nice that that has been recognised. Just amazing - my job is my hobby and that makes it so special" - that was the reaction from Stephen aka Neil Pollington, owner of the Secret Garden Touring Park on winning the evening’s top award.

With so many amazing nominees and winners it was a difficult job for the judging panel when it came to awarding the evening’s top accolade - the Judges’ Prestige Award.

This was open to all those who had been chosen as a category finalist, whether they were a winner or not.

It meant the judges having to talk through each nominee from their own categories and putting forward a suggestion. It was then up to the panel as a whole to determine who deserved this prize.

But when it actually came down to it, the decision was practically unanimous - the Secret Garden Touring Park was just outstanding in every sense of the word.

From its humble roots as a camp-site to the thriving enterprise it is today complete with its own pub on site.

Run by Neil and his wife Lesley, the Secret Garden in Mile Tree Lane, Wisbech, is quite simply a hidden gem.

What impressed the judges was the way Neil and Lesley have opened up their business welcoming ‘experts’ in to run their own enterprises within the Secret Garden.

That includes Maggie Tuck who runs the restaurant/café within the Potting Shed pub. As Lesley explained during the judging process: “We don’t have any expertise in running a restaurant, whereas Maggie does, so it was nice to invite her to come and set up her own business here at the Secret Garden. It works for both of us, as we have a professionally run café for our customers and Maggie reaps the rewards of that.”

Remarkable Entertainment provides all the acts for the shows and cabaret nights that are hosted within the Secret Garden’s specially created ‘theatre’ area and again it is a two-way street for the Secret Garden and Remarkable Entertainment.

Not only that but Neil and Lesley welcome a host of clubs and organisations to use their site as a venue for meetings. The Shedders and Fixers group, which aims at breaking down loneliness and men’s mental health, is based on the site.

Charity events such as fundraising coffee mornings are welcomed free of charge for the organisers.

So while the Secret Garden Touring Park may have started life as a camp site it is so much more than that now, and Neil promises there is so much more to come - although as you might expect he is keeping his ideas a secret for now.

All in all, the Secret Garden was a worthy winner of the Judges’ Prestige Award and Neil said: “The Secret Garden is not just a business, it is a way of life, I absolutely love getting up and going to work every day - I love what we do - it is not just my job it’s my hobby - winning shows that our business model is a good one.”