£469k granted for woodland creation

THE Sheffield & Rotherham Wildlife Trust has been granted £469,000 from a fund aimed at creating new woodland.

The money is from the Trees Call to Action Fund, led by Defra, the Forestry Commission and The National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The money will go on the South Yorkshire Woodland Creation Partnership Project, which aims to create more than 250 hectares of new woodland in the region by 2025.

The longer term target is for 12 per cent cover across the county by 2050.

Matt North, woodland creation partnership programme manager at Sheffield & Rotherham Wildlife Trust, said: “It is fantastic to receive this grant and the support from the Trees Call to Action Fund.

“Through the South Yorkshire Woodland Creation Partnership project we have proven there is a demand for well-designed woodland which is resilient to climate change and diseases, and which will provide benefits for people and wildlife now and in the future.

“This funding will provide a huge boost to help us support landowners to overcome barriers in woodland creation as well as planning how we achieve a further 2,650 hectares of new woodland in the region by 2050.”

The new cash will enable the project to expand its team and work with both public and private landowners to identify suitable planting spots.

The money will also help with design work, gaining the required permissions and applying for other grants to bring in more cash.

Matt (right) said: “When we have the expanded team in place we will be going out and engaging with landowners.”