'Huge' boost for Flag of the Fens campaign

Calls for a flag to be given official recognition have been given a "huge" boost by a council.

Peterborough City Council agreed to write to the Flag Institute to ask that the Flag of the Fens be granted official recognition.

With a Fen tiger on a striped background, the flag is already the unofficial symbol of the Fens, which covers parts of Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk and Suffolk.

Designer Peter James Bowman said that the council's support was a "huge result" for his campaign to have it included on the Flag Institute's registry.

Mr Bowman, a local historian and author, designed the flag in 2016.

He said he was inspired by other areas adopting their own flags such as the Black Country and Exmoor.

He launched his campaign to have it officially recognised two years later.

It has since gained popularity in the Fens, which covers Chatteris, March, Whittlesey and Wisbech in Cambridgeshire and surrounding areas.

It can be spotted on posters, banners and bumper stickers. Mr Bowman said he was even aware of three people who have had it tattooed.

"It's really resonated with people," he said. "People in the Fens have a strong identification with the area. There's strong local feeling."

The flag features a red tiger on a yellow stripe with a blue stripe on either side.

The tiger became a symbol of the Fens due to fierce opposition to plans to drain the land in the 17th century. It is now a nickname for people in the area.

The yellow stripe represents Fenland's agriculture, while the blue stripes represent its waterways.

It can be seen at local festivals and sports fixtures, as well as at museums and libraries in the Fens.

The flag has also been adopted by pubs and businesses including Bramblebee Farms in Wisbech, which named a sausage after it.

The butcher has attended farming summits at 10 Downing Street and displayed the Flag of the Fens in the prime minister's garden.

Mr Bowman said he wanted the flag to be recognised by the Flag Institute so that local councils and larger organisations were more likely to display it.

He said he was told by the charity that it had enough support among local people and businesses to qualify, but that it wanted to see support from elected officials.

Peterborough City Council has joined East Cambridgeshire District Council and South Holland District Council in giving it their backing, alongside local MPs Andrew Pakes, Steve Barclay and Sir John Hayes.

Fenland District Council remains a "work in progress", Mr Bowman said, after a councillor who asked for the authority's backing withdrew the suggestion following criticism from others who questioned its design and the need for the flag.

Mr Bowman said he was in the process of approaching parish councils in order to drum up more political support for the flag.

He also runs a social media campaign aimed at promoting it.

He will then approach the Flag Institute in the hope of seeing it join the registry.

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