Phoenix Forest: a partnership with The Woodland Trust

The Woodland Trust is the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity. It has 300,000 members and supporters.

The Trust has three key aims:

• to enable the creation of more native woods and places rich in trees
• to protect native woods, trees and their wildlife for the future
• to inspire everyone to enjoy and value woods and trees

Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering approximately 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres) and access to its sites is free.

“More Trees, More Good” is the Trust’s campaign to facilitate the planting of 20 million trees a year for the next 50 years as part of its aim to double native woodland cover across the UK. This includes planting at Heartwood Forest, the location of Phoenix Forest, which will become England’s largest new native woodland with 650,000 trees being planted – all by volunteers.

The benefits of woodland creation

Woods are invaluable for the wildlife they support, their social and recreational benefit to people, and for their own intrinsic beauty. Forests and trees are fundamental to our well being.
There are 232 plant and wildlife species of conservation concern that rely on native woodland – that’s more than any other habitat.

Ancient woodland provides a home for more wildlife than any other type of landscape.

Research shows that increasing woodland cover also offers green space for people for exercise and mental relaxation, gives opportunities for outside recreation

Multi-purpose forestry is a good example of “sustainable development” with a host of benefits to offer.

It’s a low intervention, low maintenance land use once established.

Woodland creation helps the environment

Woodland creation improves water quality, reduces localised flooding, acts as a cooling influence locally and can play a role in mitigating the effects of climate change.

The importance of creating more native woodlands

Positive and inspirational experience of trees and woodland at a young age is a key step towards a long term environmental commitment.

Regular contact with trees and woodland is a powerful factor influencing individuals to value woods and trees and their place within the environment. It is a priority for The Woodland Trust to enable children to learn about woods and get more actively involved with our cause.

Planting trees remains a major focus. The Woodland Trust want “every child to have the chance to plant trees” and have set a target of a million children involved from 2004-2010.