Preston and Blackburn pupils plant more than 150 trees
Preston and Blackburn schoolchildren have been out planting trees and learning about habitat creation as part of a wider project to connect people with nature.
The tree planting sessions were organised by Alison Cross, Outdoor Learning Officer with UK education charity The Ernest Cook Trust, in partnership with Ribble River Trust.
The Trust, together with the Forest of Bowland National Landscape, is delivering a three-year Connecting People & Nature project supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, and Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust. The Project’s focus is on promoting nature, wellbeing and Outdoor Learning in and around the Forest of Bowland.
The schools taking part in the tree planting were St Michael With St John CofE Primary School Blackburn and Holme Slack Community Primary School Preston. These schools are taking part in Enriching Education, to enhance and extend Outdoor Learning within their school and local green spaces.
Each winter, Ribble Rivers Trust is busy planting trees across Lancashire. This year’s tree planting sites included Shore Farm in Wilpshire and Fishwick Bottoms in Preston. Both sites were perfect for schools to access, and Alison made the connection with the headteachers of each school to offer the fully funded opportunity of a trip to a farmer’s field to plant saplings and bring some of the national curriculum to life.
In total, the children helped to plant 66 trees at Fishwick Bottoms, in line with Environment Agency, Lancashire County Council and Ribble Rivers Trust’s plan to mitigate flooding alongside the River Ribble in Preston. While Blackburn pupils planted 93 trees over three days at Shore Farm in Wilpshire.
The mix of oak, silver birch, hazel, hawthorn, holly, crab apple, field maple, lime, bird cherry and rowan will help reduce carbon and provide new wildlife habitats.
Alison said: “I really enjoyed co-delivering the tree planting sessions with the knowledgeable Ribble Rivers Trust team. Partnership work enables more schools to get involved in tree planting, as I can coordinate and adapt the sessions to suit each school’s need and Outdoor Learning focus.
"It was the first time most of these pupils had taken part in habitat conservation, being given the chance to make a practical contribution in providing homes for wildlife and combating flooding.”
James Birtwistle, of Ribble Rivers Trust said: “The enthusiasm and engagement from the pupils was refreshing to see, hopefully planting the seed of conservation in their education. The new woodland will provide many benefits to the local community and environment such as natural flood management as well as habitat improvement and connectivity.”
St Michael With St John teacher, Heidi Roberts, said: “I was so happy to see all of the children in my class getting stuck in and joining in. Even the quieter and more reserved children really came out of their shells and joined in. One of the things that stood out the most was how well the children worked together in their pairs to plant their trees and how proud they looked once they had finished.
"All of the children and staff really enjoyed themselves and had a wonderful time. It was so good to see the children enjoying themselves outdoors and working so well together.”