Funding boost for national woodland creation programme

Cheshire West and Chester Council has welcomed news of funding for year three of the national Trees for Climate programme, which is playing a major part in increasing access to nature for communities across England.

The funding will see tree coverage across the borough increase, with the area’s local Community Forest, The Mersey Forest, managing both national delivery of the Trees for Climate programme and delivering trees in the ground locally.

England’s 13 Community Forests aim to plant around 1,433 hectares (ha) of trees – or around 2,007 football pitches – across England, thanks to over £34 million of funding announced for year three of the Trees for Climate programme.

The funding will help to provide grants that cover up to 100 per cent of the costs for tree planting and 15 years of maintenance payments, to ensure that any planting continues to deliver long term value for the landowner.

The Mersey Forest team can support landowners with the funding application and provide free, no obligation advice to people or organisations considering tree planting, whether you have a small pocket of unused land on your property or are a farmer with several hectares of land looking to diversify income streams.

Cheshire West and Chester Council is playing a leading role, nationally, by acting as the legal accountable body for the whole Trees for Climate programme and has pledged to support schemes to accelerate tree planting in the borough in their Climate Emergency Response Plan and Land Action Plan.

Councillor Matt Bryan, Cabinet Member for Housing, Planning and Climate Emergency, said: “The Mersey Forest is one of 13 Community Forests across England helping to create woodlands near to cities, towns and villages, providing more deprived communities with greater access to nature and helping to bring a range of benefits to neighbourhoods, including improving people’s health and wellbeing.

“This funding will provide a vital boost to both the borough and the country’s efforts in the fight against climate change.”

Paul Nolan, Director of The Mersey Forest and Chair of England’s Community Forests, said: “This latest round of funding will allow us to establish even more woodlands for local communities across the country to benefit from.

“Over the past two years, England’s Community Forests have worked closely with DEFRA, Forestry Commission, Natural England and over 70 local authorities and a huge range of landowners to establish more than 1000 hectares of new woodland. We are looking forward to continuing this joint endeavour and helping the country to reach its net zero goal.”

Collectively around 2,300 hectares of trees – equivalent to around 3,220 football pitches – will be planted as part of this year’s total funding allocation from the Nature for Climate Fund of £44.2 million. The funding will benefit 13 Community Forests, as well as the National Forest, Northern Forest, Northumberland Forest, the Forest for Cornwall and Woodlands for Water. These projects will expand woodlands near our cities, towns, villages and rivers - giving more people greater access to nature and improving health and wellbeing as well as playing an important role in Government ambitions to treble tree planting rates by the end of this Parliament and reach net zero.

Large, small, well-designed and diverse woodlands created thanks to this funding will be more resilient to climate change, as well as natural hazards such as wildfire and storms – playing an important role in helping us adapt to a warmer world. They will help to reduce flood risk in vulnerable areas, provide sustainable UK grown timber and provide more places for nature and biodiversity to thrive.

Lord Zac Goldsmith, Forestry Minister, said:

“Our economies, livelihoods and well-being all rely on nature.

“As well as tackling the impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss, this significant funding will create diverse treescapes across the country and improve the health and wellbeing of local communities by giving them more opportunities to enjoy nature on their doorstep.”

The announcement comes following a successful planting season in 2021/22, which saw The Mersey Forest plant over 100 hectares of new woodland.

During the last planting season they supported a landowner near Frodsham to create over 7ha of new woodland and a native mixed wildflower meadow that, when established, will become a carbon store and a space where wildlife can thrive.

The team has also supported a number of community projects in west Cheshire this year including at The Five Villages Hall, Backford, numerous school sites and the COVID-19 reflection areas, created in parks across the borough.   

All trees planted in Cheshire and Merseyside are helping to grow The Mersey Forest and the larger Northern Forest, which stretches from Liverpool to the Yorkshire coast.

Any landowners, farmers or organisations with land suitable for tree planting and interested in getting involved in the next phase of planting, which is due to start in the autumn, can contact The Mersey Forest team by calling: 01925 816217 or emailing: 

mail@merseyforest.org.uk

Pictured - Volunteers helping with planting at The Five Villages Hall.