Gerrards Cross Parish Council’s bid to be named the Best Kept Village in Buckinghamshire received strong support from residents at the authorities annual general meeting tonight.

Plans to improve village facilities, infrastructure and environment were started in about October last year and with judging due to take place in June, councillors say they still need more help.

Chairman Chris Brown said: “The council is very focused on our entry for the Buckinghamshire Best Kept Village competition.

“This was originally put forward by the Gerrards Cross Traders Association back in October last year and was seen as an excellent opportunity to pull together the various organisations in Gerrards Cross to work on a common cause.

“Both the parish council and the traders, as well as a number of other organisations including our scouts, guides, schools, churches, rotary clubs, community association and our conservation volunteers, are working together to improve the appearance of our village.

“We welcome any assistance from our residents in tidying up their own streets, including litter picking, hedge trimming and sign cleaning.

“You can also help by joining our conservation volunteers who meet on the third Saturday of each month tidying up our commons.”

The Gerrards Cross campaign was officially launched in mid-March and volunteers have so far been displaying posters to spread the message of the group.

Planned work across the village will be carried out in April and May, the council said at the time.

If you are interested in helping the group’s bid to be named Buckinghamshire’s Best Kept Village email BestKeptVillage@gerrardscross.gov.uk Updates can also be found on the Gerrards Cross Parish Council’s Twitter feed and Facebook page.

Also on the agenda for the parish council annual meeting – which about 50 people attended – was crime and parking.

A South Bucks police officer attended the event and spoke about how villagers could work with the authorities to stamp out crime.

As well as anti-social behaviour, the force also look at burglaries and other major crimes, of which he said most incidents reported in the village are not committed by residents from the area.

One other issue raised during the meeting was the status of Gerrards Cross.

Currently a village, some councillors voted for their status to be changed to a town last year, but lost a narrow decision five-four.

Although some argued that a town status was more befitting of Gerrards Cross, South Bucks District Councillor Deirdre Holloway argued against a change, saying “you don’t have to be a town to be a success.”