Tag: National Tree Week

National Tree Week at 50: A Future Filled with Trees

NATIONAL TREE WEEK: 22 – 30 NOVEMBER

COMING UP – It’s the fiftieth anniversary of National Tree Week – the UK’s biggest celebration of trees! 

National Tree Week (NTW), from November 22 – 30, marks the start of the winter tree planting season. The Tree Council and partners want people all across the country to plant, connect with, celebrate and learn more about our trees and all that they deliver for people, wildlife and our planet.

They brighten our streets, parks and gardens – and are a vital element of our nation’s network of hedgerows. 

In a year where emotions around trees ran high following the alarming damage, for example, to the ancient Enfield oak, and where convictions were handed down for the destruction of the Sycamore Gap Tree in a ‘seemingly mindless act of vandalism’ – NTW brings urgent focus, not just to the need to establish more trees, but also to ensure those we already enjoy are sufficiently protected. 

With this in mind, the theme for NTW 2025 is ‘A Future Filled with Trees’. 

The Tree Council CEO, Sara Lom, said: “We’re delighted to celebrate our 50th National Tree Week, which provides a fantastic opportunity for all of us to come together for the love of trees. 

“Trees have faced so many challenges over the past 50 years, from Dutch elto ash dieback, from development pressures to water shortage, but we’ve never needed trees more. 

“They provide homes for wildlife, help us cope with our warming climate and make our busy city lives more joyful every day, with their beauty, colour and form.  

“They help us – and now we need to help them back – and by getting involved this planting season, you’ll be part of growing a greener, tree-filled future for everyone.” 

The Tree Council’s official NTW webpage – www.nationaltreeweek.org.uk – has details of planting opportunities, events, talks, tours and more, taking place throughout the UK during NTW. We’ve developed an easy-to-use interactive map to help people search their local area. Simply visit the page and search the map! 

For those unable to join in tree planting, download the pack of Tree Party materials to help celebrate the trees in your life.  

The Tree Council is also sharing printed materials with more than 300 libraries across England, Scotland and Wales, to create colourful and informative tree-themed displays in these important and well-visited community hubs.

The packs contain activity booklets, posters, tree-themed reading lists, and even special NTW bookmarks! 

Find your nearest library by visiting: https://treecouncil.org.uk/seasonal-campaigns/national-tree-week/national-tree-week-libraries/  

And, of course, The Tree Council is running lively and informative free, online talks! 

On Monday November 24, Tree Warden Volunteer Engagement Officer, Charlie Knowles will host The Future of Trees: Exploring Green Careers with Young Leaders, featuring Lucy Grabe-Watson, Chair & Founder of Ancient Woodlands UK; Harry Munt, Senior Ambassador for the Young Tree Champions; India Blake, Agroforestry Woodland Officer at the Forestry Commission and Co-Founder of the Logging Off Club; plus The Tree Council’s Science & Action Research Officer, Katie Jones. 

On Wednesday November 26, Jon Stokes, The Tree Council’s Director of Trees, Science & Research, and the man behind WILD Guides’ 2025 publication, Trees of Britain and Ireland, will be joined by Paul Wood, the author of Tree Hunting; and Harriet Rix, the author of The Genius of Trees, for a conversation about Trees in Unexpected Places, hosted by Tree Council CEO, Sara Lom. 

The final event of the week, on Thursday November 27, will see Riverford founder, Guy Singh-Watson and Soil Association Chief Executive, Helen Browning OBE share their experience of developing Trees on Farms with chair, Jon Stokes, and Ben Norwood, who was co-lead on the Trees on Farms research pilot – part of The Tree Council’s Trees Outside Woodland project. 

National Tree Week 2025 runs from November 22 – 30. To find out more about how to get involved, find your nearest NTW themed library or access resources, or to book events, please visit www.nationaltreeweek.org.uk

National Tree Week: Future Woodlands Scotland and bp sign contract for £10m Urban Forestry Programme

As tree lovers across the country gather to celebrate National Tree Week, Future Woodlands Scotland (FWS) announces a partnership with bp to help deliver greener cities, towns, and urban areas through an innovative forestry programme.

The charity, which is dedicated to creating and conserving woodlands across Scotland, has signed a contract with bp, whereby the energy major intends to commit funding of a total of £10million to the newly created urban forestry programme as part of the development of its Scottish offshore windfarm, Morven, jointly developed with EnBW. 

A key ambition of the programme is to use new and emerging technologies to target the urban areas where creating greenspace will be of the most benefit to people.

The funding has enabled the charity to recruit its first urban forestry manager who will lead the delivery of the urban forestry programme, which it expects to launch in mid-2024.

FWS chief executive, Shireen Chambers, said: “We’re excited to be working with bp to take this next step in the development of our Urban Forestry Programme for the potential benefit of more than 4.5 million people living in Scotland’s urban areas.

“We are committed to making a positive impact on the urban environment, delivering substantial benefits for people, the environment, and the economy through the creation of a diverse network of trees and woodlands in and around our urban settlements.

“With the appointment of our first programme manager, Des Hackett, who has a wealth of experience in public policy and green space development, we can get down to the detail of developing the programme and look forward to its official launch next year.”

Urban forestry is the management of trees and forest resources in and around community ecosystems for their present and potential contributions to the physiological, sociological, and economic well-being of urban society.

Research shows that, in addition to the health and well-being benefits associated with access to nature, urban forestry can result in economic gains. According to a recent study by Forest Research and Defra, individual trees in the UK’s urban and rural areas are worth up to £3.8 bn per year.

The economic value is based on the role trees and woodlands play in sequestering and storing carbon, regulating temperatures, strengthening flood resilience, and reducing noise and air pollution. 

In Edinburgh, trees and woodlands help remove nearly 200,000 tonnes of airborne pollutants every year, and in Glasgow, research found that the urban forest structure intercepted 812,000 m2 of rainfall each year and removed nearly 300,000 tonnes of air pollution.

Ms Chambers added: “With more than 80% of people in Scotland living in urban areas, it’s important that they can access green networks where they live.

“The purpose of this programme is to create leafier neighbourhoods, including trees in parks, streets, amenity areas and along canals and rivers, which encourages people to spend more time outdoors interacting with their communities, which in turn promotes health and well-being.”

With the UK’s largest annual tree celebration National Tree Week about to start, FWS chief executive, Shireen Chambers and Richard Haydock, bp’s programme director, UK offshore wind, marked the new contract signing by planting an oak tree in the Scottish capital at Hunters Hall Park, located in the south of the city. It will contribute to the nature restoration along the Pentland to Portobello green corridor. 

Richard Haydock, bp’s programme director, UK offshore wind said: “We are proud of bp’s long-established partnership with Future Woodlands Scotland.

“The Urban Forestry Programme agreement marks an important expansion of our support. We look forward to launching the programme in 2024, which will focus on increasing the number of trees and green spaces in Scotland’s cities and towns.”

bp has supported the regeneration of woodlands in Scotland for more than 20 years and is committed to making a positive impact to restore and enhance biodiversity where its people live and work.

Celebrate National Tree Week in Craigmillar Castle Park this weekend

Forestry Commission Scotland (FCS) and Edinburgh and Lothians Greenspace Trust (ELGT) is inviting the community to celebrate National Tree Week at its popular tree dressing event on Saturday (1st December). Continue reading Celebrate National Tree Week in Craigmillar Castle Park this weekend