Welsh cabinet secretary supports creation of low maintenance forests

The Welsh cabinet secretary has announced £500,000 of funding supporting the creation of 16 new Coetiroedd Bach (Tiny Forests).

The third round of funding has been provided by the Welsh government and is being administered by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Roughly the size of a tennis court, Coetiroedd Bach have low management and maintenance requirements after the first two years.

Grants of up to £40,000 were available to applicants per site, with a maximum of £250,000 for multiple sites in a single application.

Organisations, communities and individuals who wanted to create new small woodlands in collaboration with local communities were able to apply for the grant.

Once completed, each site will automatically become part of the National Forest for Wales.

The cabinet secretary for climate change and rural affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies, said: "I recently visited a Coetir Bach in Llangors and it is a fantastic example of how these woodland sites are enabling communities to access nature and green spaces as well as introducing rich biodiversity into urban areas.

"These small, densely packed woodland areas are fast-growing and can attract more than 500 animal and plant species in their first three years.

"I am really pleased to be able to announce that we have awarded more than half a million pounds worth of funding to create more areas like this across Wales."

The Coetiroedd Bach Grant is supporting the creation of ‘Tiny Forests’ between April 2023 and the end of March 2025. 

It is part of the National Forest for Wales programme.