A CROW country golf club has been recognised for its hard environmental work by being given a national award.

New Malton Golf Club near Meldreth has been commended with the Volvo Eco Challenge Award and a check for �1,000 for being the only chemical free golf course in the country.

Jon Atkinson, golf ecologist at New Malton, who claims he is the only man in the country with his job title, said: “I think the judging panel noticed the hard work we have put in to ensure we are the only chemical golf club in the country.

“We have been busy in getting youngsters involved in conservation projects, planted fruit trees, thousands of bulbs and built up bird and owl boxes and feeding stations.

“We have also created hibernators, which are areas on the golf course where we use the grass to create places for wildlife to live.”

The course found out about the award a couple of weeks ago after they submitted their case, and Mr Atkinson is already making plans with what the club will do with their money.

“The people at Volvo are quite insistent that the money is used on the ecology of the course, so we will be spending it on future projects like the bird feeding centres and a new orchard.”