Chris Beardshaw, presenter of BBC2's The Flying Gardener series and Gold medal winner at Chelsea Flower Show, unveiled a unique opportunity for amateur and professional garden designers alike at the Malvern Spring Gardening Show, held on May 10-13, 2007.

Mr Beardshaw will oversee a year-long apprenticeship for the successful candidate, which includes helping them create a garden for the 2008 Malvern Autumn Gardening Show and the ultimate test, designing a courtyard garden at the 2009 Chelsea Flower Show.

The vocational scheme includes enrolment on a Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) course working towards a recognised qualification and "mentoring" by Mr Beardshaw and other experts from the Three Counties Agricultural Society, the organisation that runs the Malvern shows, and the RHS. The organisers are currently looking for a sponsor/benefactor, who will also contribute commercial expertise in running and marketing a successful design business.

"This is a real opportunity to enable one individual with flair and determination to develop as a designer and build up a career. Our apprentice will benefit from solid, worthwhile education, advice and support from everyone involved," said Mr Beardshaw.

Experienced and up-and-coming designers are invited to apply in writing for further details to: The Three Counties Agricultural Society, The Showground, Malvern, Worcestershire, WR13 6NW.

Applicants will be expected to provide a portfolio of realised and potential designs, together with a business case for taking their ideas forward as a viable proposition. The candidates will then have to pitch in front of a panel of judges and the general public at the 2008 Malvern Spring Gardening Show, in the Interactive Design Theatre. The individual who makes the greatest impression on the panel based on all the above criteria will be awarded the apprenticeship and will begin work with Mr Beardshaw.

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