WELCOMED to Ilkley by glorious sunshine, Britain in Bloom judges suspected divine intervention on behalf of the local committee.

But they set out the strict criteria for marking and refused to be swayed by outside influences. Even the fact that the town had cultivated Britain's most famous gardener would not sway them from their allotted task.

Asked if the fact that Ilkley was the home of Alan Titchmarsh would help earn a few extra points, judge Peter Holman said: "Not at all, but it won't go against you either, Ilkley was on the map before he was here anyway."

Mr Holman, a highly-qualified horticulturalist , has been involved with Britain in Bloom since the 1960s. He works as a landscape management consultant and in his spare time supports South East in Bloom, is a director, trustee and judge of London in Bloom.

The other judge, Clive Addison, is a retired local government senior manager with 27 years' experience, and is a fellow of the Institute of Horticulture and other organisations.

They arrived to take stock of the months of planning and hard work that had gone into preparing the town for judgment, by Ilkley in Bloom, Bradford Council and many other organisations, businesses and individuals. The judges were selected by Britain in Bloom organisers, the Royal Horticultural Society and Tidy Britain Group.

The five criteria they will judge the town by are:

l Floral displays.

l Permanent planting and landscaping.

l Conservation.

l Cleanliness.

l Public awareness.

Ilkley's rivals in the national Britain in Bloom competition are Dungannon, in Northern Ireland; Hexham, in Northumberland; Nantwich, in Cheshire, and Market Harborough, in Leicestershire.

Before taking a tour around the town the two judges went to Ilkley Town Hall where there was a photographic exhibition detailing some of the work carried out by the Ilkley in Bloom volunteers and winners of the competitions held to improve the look of the town.

Mr Holman explained how one town could be chosen as the overall winner from the five finalists: "If all five criteria are fairly average and one sparkles in one particular area that just might make a difference."

Asked if the judges' own particular likes and dislikes could make a difference, Mr Addison said: "We are not allowed to have our own preferences - we have to judge on what is laid down - otherwise it would not be fair. The marking is done in a way that supports that."

Mr Holman added: "The one thing we are really looking for is to see how much of a commitment there is from the community itself."

He said that the driving ethic behind the Britain in Bloom competition was about making each particular place a pleasure in which to live, work and visit, with community involvement a major factor.

The official judging route began at the Town Hall on Station Road and included visits to town landmarks such as Darwin Gardens on Wells Road, All Saints Church, The Manor House, allotments on Bridge Lane, Kings Road, Riverside Gardens and Abbeydale Residential Home in Riddings Road.

As part of the environmental aspect to the competition the judges also took in Ilkley's recycling facilities at Golden Butts Road.

Judging of the finalists will be completed by the end of this week and the winners of the competition will be announced at a Hollywood Oscar-style awards ceremony at the Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds, on September 23.

Ilkley could be awarded a gold, silver gilt, silver or bronze medal but will have to achieve a very high standard to be granted the accolade.

Volunteers had been busy all week putting the final touches to improvements in the town and sprucing up areas where the judges were due to go.