Humber Forest volunteers plant over a thousand trees to mark the start of planting season

Humber Forest has planted its first trees of the new tree planting season, last week, with over 1,000 saplings planted at sites across the region.

The trees were planted in a range of projects across the county, including at a primary school in Skidby, and farmland in Goole and Holderness.

The volunteers educated the children at Skibdy Primary School on the essential role trees play in preserving our local environment, and in helping to prevent soil erosion, and providing habitats for wildlife.

Last year, Humber Forest team planted an unprecedented 238,000 trees, which they are aiming to supplant in the upcoming planting season. This year’s target is to plant 250,000-300,000 trees by March 2025.

The team are currently working with over 100 landowners across Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, who are interested in planting trees on their land.

Projects ranges from a golf course which wants to enhance the course with more trees, an orchard for schools, community woodlands, as well as hedgerows and parkland style planting on farms, to provide shade and shelter for animals.

The tree saplings for Humber Forest plantings are grown at Mires Beck Nursery in North Cave, an East Yorkshire charity that supports adults with physical disabilities, learning disabilities and Autism.

Humber Forest, supported by Defra Nature for Climate Fund, is the community forest for Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire. It is one of 15 community forests across England, and part of the larger Northern Forest that stretches from Liverpool to the Yorkshire Coast. East Riding of Yorkshire Council is the accountable body for the Humber Forest.

The team works with communities, businesses, and landowners to increase tree cover and maintain existing woodland. Humber Forest provides grants to cover up to 100 per cent funding for planting as well as at least five years maintenance for farmers, landowners, businesses, and communities to plant hedgerows or trees on their land.

Councillor Paul West, East Riding of Yorkshire cabinet member for environment and transport at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, said:” This is a wonderful project and its great to see so many trees planted across the region. Trees provide innumerable benefits for communities and wildlife, and I look forward to the Humber Forest expanding further over the coming year.”

Humber Forest can fund large and small projects, providing up to 100 per cent of agreed costs of tree planting, hedgerow creation and maintenance. It can also support tree protection, fences, gates and more. For more information, or to get involved, visit www.humberforest.org or email humber.forest@eastriding.gov.uk

Stuart Richardson, Skidby Primary School Headteacher said “At Skidby CE Primary, our vision is that we can make a big difference within our community. One way we can do this is by improving our natural environment.

We believe that nature plays a key role in the development of young minds and by integrating green spaces into our school site, we are providing our students with an opportunity to engage with the environment, learn about biodiversity, and understand the importance of taking care of our planet.

The trees we’ve planted today will provide shade, improve air quality, and offer a peaceful space for our students to learn and reflect well into the future.”

Tree and hedgerow planting in the Humber Forest is supported with funding from the Trees for Climate and Northern Forest Grow Back Greener funds, which are part of the Defra Nature for Climate Fund and provide landowners with grants to cover up to 100 per cent of all woodland creation project costs.

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Notes to Editors

• Humber Forest is the community forest for Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire and is one of 15 community forests in England.
• The three neighbouring authorities of Hull City Council, East Riding of Yorkshire Council and North Lincolnshire Council work together in partnership through Humber Forest.

England’s Community Forests

• Humber Forest is one of a network of 15 across the country. Together, the work of England’s Community Forests represents the largest environmental regeneration programme in the country.
• For over thirty years, England’s Community Forests have been working with communities, landowners, and businesses to transform the landscapes and communities in and around our largest towns and cities.
• Through innovation and a long-term commitment to the areas in which they work, the 15 Community Forests are working to ensure that trees and woodlands are at the very heart of our urban landscapes.
• Find out more at: www.englandscommunityforests.org.uk

About Trees for Climate and Defra’s Nature for Climate Fund  

Trees for Climate is a woodland creation programme managed by England’s Community Forests and is funded by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs through the Nature for Climate Fund.

About the Northern Forest

The Northern Forest has already established nearly 8 million new trees since 2018 and is transforming the landscape from coast to coast and in and around cities such as Liverpool, Chester, Manchester, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield, York and Hull. A partnership between The Woodland Trust, the largest woodland conservation charity in the UK, and Community Forests: City of Trees (Greater Manchester), Mersey Forest, Humber Forest and White Rose Forest, and the Community Forest Trust, is delivering this ambitious project. The partnership is connecting people with nature through the Northern Forest, creating growth and investment opportunities, reducing climate change and flood risk, improving health and wellbeing, supporting the rural economy, and developing innovative funding mechanisms for the future.

Find out more at thenorthernforest.org.uk