THE COVENTRY community, Citizen Housing and Earthwatch Europe have come together to plant 2,400 new trees in the city as part of the Tiny Forest Project.
The trees are being spread equally across four sites in Coventry – Foresters Road, Bell Green Road, Nickson Road and Thimbler Road.
Local schools have volunteered to take part in the planting process as an extra-curricular activity.
Year five Teacher at Manor Park Primary School, Katy Moore, believes the project has brought her class closer to their community.
She said: “It’s good for the children to connect with nature.
“They know this event has a purpose – bringing more green space to the community.”
Elly Dix, Citizen Housing’s head of estates and services, said they felt the project had helped lead to a positive change for their managed green areas, adding: “We decided to get involved in this project as it’s a great of helping the environment.
“In each of these areas there is grass which we used to cut, but now trees have been planted, better use will be made of this land. This includes encouraging wildlife and people being able to use the area as benches will also be installed.
“It was also lovely to see pupils from Manor Park Primary school get involved in the planting too.
“We want to work with our partners to make a positive difference to our communities and this is a good example of this.”
The project has been spearheaded by the Forestry Commission’s Local Authority Treescape Fund with matched funding by TBL Fire Protection, Westfield Speciality Insurance and Redevco.
The process was supported further through resources funded by the National Lottery Community Action Fund.
Earthwatch Europe says it started the Tiny Forest Project to bring dense green spaces back to urban areas, giving wildlife space to thrive, mitigating the impacts of climate change and stimulating local communities.
Hannah Davidson, Earthwatch Europe’s senior programme manager, said: “Green spaces don’t have to be vast to make a big difference. Tiny Forests provide rich opportunites for connecting with nature and supporting local biodiversity.”
