Major funding boost supports green jobs and nature recovery

The government’s £80m Green Recovery Challenge Fund has awarded grants to 90 projects, with the hope of supporting 2,500 jobs, planting almost a million trees, and boosting nature recovery.

The selected projects will receive a share of £40m, spanning over 600 sites across the country, with work ranging from creating new insect pathways in the countryside and towns to tree planting in deprived urban areas.

This announcement follows a successful first round of funding, where almost £40m of investment saw over 800,000 trees planted, alongside wider conservation work and the restoration of protected landscapes and damaged habitats such as moorlands, wetlands and forests.

Environment minister, Rebecca Pow, said: ‘The diverse and ambitious projects being awarded funding today will help environmental organisations employ more people to work on tree-planting, nature restoration and crucially, help more of the public to access and enjoy the outdoors.

‘Through our £80 million Fund, we are on track to support over 2,500 jobs, plant almost a million trees and increase nature recovery at a huge scale across the country, which will help us deliver against our 25 Year Environment Plan.’

The winning projects include ‘Bringing the Buzz Back to the City’, which will create a network of 45 nectar-rich public sites, with Urban Green Newcastle and Northumberland Wildlife Trust aiming to plant 2,500 trees and 25,000 bulbs and create 18 hectares of grassland.

The Trees for Cities scheme will also plant 55,000 trees across 83 coastal locations in 7 towns, to increase tree coverage in deprived urban areas.

The fund is being delivered by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, in partnership with Natural England, the Environment Agency and the Forestry Commission.

Chief executive of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Ros Kerslake, said: ‘From wetland restoration, to creating wildlife-rich habitat for bees, it is vital that we value, protect and rebuild our natural heritage. This new funding will not only allow projects to carry out direct conservation which is essential in protecting our biodiversity, but it will increase awareness of how and why we need to change our behaviours in order to protect our future.’

In related news, Leicester Council have announced a 10-year plan to protect wildlife, conserve habitats and help ensure nature thrives in the area.

Photo by aiokr chen