£2.7 million available for local authorities to increase tree planting and natural regeneration in locations outside woodlands.
A brand-new funding initiative to increase tree planting and natural regeneration in local communities has been announced by the government today (Friday 12 March), with £2.7 million available this year, building the pipeline of projects for community planting in future years.
The Local Authority Treescapes fund is aimed at establishing more trees in riverbanks, hedgerows, parklands, urban areas, beside roads and footpaths, in copses and shelterbelts, including neglected, disused and vacant community spaces. Trees in these settings are particularly valuable as they can provide the greatest levels of benefit to ecosystems and society, such as carbon absorption, flood protection and support for biodiversity, as well as connecting fragmented habitats.
The fund will help the nation build back greener from the pandemic and will target landscapes that have been neglected in the past, ecologically damaged or affected by tree diseases like ash dieback - with ash being the most common species of tree found in non-woodland locations. Grants are available for local authorities, working together with community groups, volunteers, NGOs. Successful applicants will be informed by the end of July.
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Posted On: 12/03/2021