Funding for projects to plant hundreds of thousands of trees

Hundreds of thousands of trees will be planted in communities across England thanks to funding through the Nature for Climate Fund.

To celebrate National Tree Week, the government has announced that more than £12 million will be allocated to the successful applicants to four funds supporting tree planting efforts for future generations.

The funding will see 260,000 trees be planted outside of woodlands as part of the Local Authority Treescapes Fund with 139 local authorities awarded a share of the now £4.4 million pot across 42 projects. Projects will support a variety of ways to get trees in the ground, from natural regeneration and traditional planting to community engagement.

Initiatives, which will include local residents, schools and environmental groups, will restore trees to non-wooded areas such as riverbanks, along hedgerows, beside roads and footpaths, and within vacant community spaces – areas where treescapes are often highly degraded due to neglect, disease or historical decline.

Additionally, 46 projects in England, planting almost 25,000 trees, will be supported through the third round of the Urban Tree Challenge Fund, building upon the 134,000 trees already planted through this fund in deprived urban areas.

Forestry Minister, Lord Goldsmith, said: “This targeted package of funding will help us to build back greener and regenerate natural spaces across the country for the benefit of all. Trees are at the heart of our ambitious environmental programme, as we work to deliver on the promises we made at COP26 and treble tree planting rates by the end of this Parliament. But at the local level, trees and woodlands are the lifeblood of communities, essential to supporting well-being, reducing pollution and improving people’s quality of life.”