SOUTHEND'S two en-tries in the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show came up smelling of roses to win coveted silver awards.

The Miller's Garden, a colourful creation by the council's parks department, was the only exhibition from a local authority and took silver in the Show Gardens category.

The display is set at the turn of the 19th century and features a working water wheel and a proliferation of plants, including field poppies, corn marigolds, camomile and roses.

Southend's Youth Off-ending Service also en-tered the hotly contested competition, with its exhibit, A Room With A View.

It won a silver award in the Inspiring Spaces category.

Last year, the youth offending team won bronze and was thrilled to improve on it this time, with its courtyard-style garden.

Paul Jenkinson, parks technical officer, said he was pleased with the success of the parks department, which had a good record both at Hampton Court and Chelsea flower shows.

He said: "The technical and landscaping team have put in a real team effort. About 15 people were involved.

"It takes a year to plan and to actually plant the garden takes two weeks. It starts with a working mill propelled by water, with crop fields and goes into a fantastic wildflower meadow.

"Now we want people in Southend to help us by voting for us in the People's Award."

Sally Carr, councillor responsible for children and learning, praised the youth offending team for its display.

She said: "The team has done so well and really deserves its award after the amount of hard work it has put into its display.

"It's great to see them channelling their energy into something so creative."