Looking after trees, Tollesbury

Natural Environment

The Natural Environment group runs community initiatives that aim to protect Tollesbury’s natural environment and reduce the impacts of climate change.

We have focused on planting trees, reducing waste going to landfill, saving water, the importance of hedgerows, dealing with heat, and more.

Current Projects

Tree-planting

We have an ongoing community tree-planting project to help tackle climate change. Over 650 saplings have already been planted, and we will be planting more in spring 2024. Our trees are part of the late Queen’s ‘Green Canopy’ initiative and in 2022 we were awarded a ‘Tree of Trees’ from the Living Sculpture that stood outside Buckingham Palace for the Platinum Jubilee celebrations, one of only 300 awarded across the country. The tree, a hazel, was planted at the cemetery . A committed group of volunteers comes out to regularly water the young trees and ensure they thrive.

Child watering tree for Tollesbury 'Green Canopy' project

Seed hut

Together with the food group, a Seed Swap hut has been set up outside the doctor’s surgery. People can take their spare seeds along to swap for vegetable, fruit, herb and flower seeds donated by others. The hut was made by local volunteers using recycled and reclaimed wood.

Seed Swap Hut located outside Tollesbury Doctors surgery

Clothes swaps and mending

In collaboration with the toddler group Tolly Tots we run a clothes swap rail on Fridays from 9-11am during term time. You can swap a clean item of clothing that your child no longer needs for something else, reducing waste. The swap rail currently has clothing for babies to age 7, but the aim is to eventually have clothes for children of all ages. We are also hoping to expand this to adults, as well as working with another community group to provide mending sessions where you can learn ‘how to do it yourself’ or have someone do it for you.

Encouraging and protecting wildlife

We also have projects to support swifts and hedgehogs in Tollesbury, both of which are under threat from climate change. If you would like to create a hedgehog highway in your street do get in touch.

Protect our Tollesbury hedgehogs

Future Projects

On Saturday 11th January 2025 we are holding a rubbish and recycling fair in the Congregational Hall.  Further details coming soon.

We also hope to increase the number of households in Tollesbury that have water butts, helping people save both water and money.

If you’d like to help with any of these projects please get in touch.

 

 

 

-->