More than 8,500 trees being given away by Telford council to fight climate change

The council is giving 8,600 trees to local residents, schools and landowners to plant in their gardens and land as part of the scheme.

‘Trees4TW’ is being launched during National Tree Week, and the free trees are a mix of native species sourced in the UK, including oak, beech, crab apple, silver birch and rowan, plus hedgerow species that include hawthorn, dog rose, blackthorn and crab apple.

Residents can apply for a single tree for their back garden, schools can apply for up to 30 trees, and charities, businesses and landowners can apply for up to 500.

As tree canopy cover is lowest in the north of the borough, the council said it is particularly keen to receive applications from there.

Councillor Carolyn Healy, Telford & Wrekin Council cabinet member for the natural environment and climate change, said: “Latest Government figures show that the UK is falling far behind on its tree-planting targets which needs to be addressed urgently if we are to tackle the climate crisis.

“The council declared a climate emergency on July 25 last year and committed to become carbon neutral by 2030 with an aspiration for the whole borough to achieve this too. And whilst it sometimes feels that the climate crisis is too big an issue to grasp, we can all do something about it and make a difference.

“Trees4TW will help you to do that for free. We have a variety of trees available, so whether you are a resident with a small back garden or a local organisation with a bigger piece of land, we have the right tree for the right place.”

In addition to the trees planted through the council initiative, the Fellowship of Trees has given 445 oak trees to Extinction Rebellion Telford, which will be shared with the Friends of Dothill Local Nature reserve, Telford Woods, Granville Park and others.

The deadline to apply for trees is noon on December 18 and applications can be submitted at sustainabletelfordandwrekin.co.uk/get-involved/trees4tw