Three community projects are to receive funding to plant more trees in cities and towns across Scotland

A community orchard, tree planting and community wellbeing initiative and a local nature reserve are the first projects to benefit from the Urban Forestry Programme.

Article Source: Future Woodlands Scotland
Last Updated: 3 February 2025 14:26

Image Credit: Stewart Attwood Photography

Future Woodlands Scotland (FWS), the charity dedicated to creating and conserving woodlands across Scotland, has selected the first three projects to receive grants of up to £20,000 from its Urban Forestry Programme.

The Urban Forestry Programme is an ambitious ten-year project that sees FWS working alongside project founding partner bp to support and improve green spaces in Scotland’s cities, towns, and urban areas, an ambition shared by the two organisations.

This first round of funding will support projects that improve tree visibility, canopy cover, access to greenspaces, nature enhancement and education on biodiversity, food sustainability and climate literacy.

The first three projects to receive funding are:

1. Friends of Inch Park (FOIP), Edinburgh
A community orchard and planting project with an arts-based engagement programme that will improve canopy cover and raise awareness of nurturing trees.

2. Friends of Linn Park, Glasgow
A tree restoration and enhancement programme at a nature reserve in Glasgow that includes facilities for community groups and aims to enhance woodland to provide a better-quality environment for local communities.

3. Norton Park SCIO, Edinburgh
A small-scale tree planting and greenspace improvement project to increase tree visibility and enhance access to greenspaces for local people and the wider community.

Shireen Chambers, CEO of FWS said: “By funding these three urban greening projects, we are investing in sustainable solutions that will not only benefit the environment by creating leafier neighbourhoods but also improve the wellbeing of local communities and encourage people to spend more time outdoors, interacting with their communities.

“Our goal is for everyone to benefit from trees, whether through learning about them, actively engaging in their care or simply spending time among them.

“We are proud to lead this important initiative with the backing of our founding partner bp and we look forward to seeing how these projects develop and reporting positive outcomes over the coming years.”

A total of 33 applications were submitted across two funding levels: projects ranging from £2,000 to £20,000, and those ranging from £20,000 to £100,000. The selected projects fall within the former funding range.

The projects were chosen based on the significant contribution they could make to the Urban Forestry Programme goal of helping towns and cities across Scotland achieve the 3:30:300 rule: everyone should see three trees from their home, every neighbourhood should have 30% tree canopy and quality green space within 300 metres.

The Friends of Linn Park nature reserve meadow and woodland aims to enhance and maintain woodland and spread tree planting into publicly accessible areas of surrounding communities.

Dorothy Buchanan, Chair, Friends of Linn Park said: “Friends of Linn Park is delighted to receive this funding from Future Woodlands Scotland. We are so grateful for the opportunity to create a local community growing area which will sustain the habitats of Linn Park Local Nature Reserve and allow it to contribute to the 'tree equity' and health and well-being of the surrounding neighbourhoods. We look forward to increasing our own knowledge and engaging with many other community groups in the area to improve our ability to plant and look after trees and woodlands.”

Scotland’s urban tree cover (under 16%) is much lower than the EU average of 30.2%. Increasing the number of trees in its cities and towns is crucial in supporting the journey to net zero and delivering a wide range of socio-economic benefits.

Applications for funding were measured by the Tree Equity tool, which was created to address imbalances in urban tree distribution by American Forests, a US non-profit organisation, and was brought to the UK by the Woodland Trust and Centre for Sustainable Healthcare.

Tom Hudson, bp’s project director, offshore wind said: “bp has been providing funding towards Scottish woodland creation for over 20 years and is delighted to continue this. We look forward to seeing our support brought to life by these three community projects.”

bp’s contribution to the programme represents a significant part of its commitments to Scotland, which were made as part of the ScotWind bid for its Morven offshore wind project.

The Urban Forestry Programme has already funded two pilot projects: a fruit and nut tree planting project in Stirling, and a tree warden volunteer scheme in Glasgow.

Successful applicants for the larger grant programme, which offers funding of up to £100k, will be announced in Spring. More information on the Urban Forestry programme is available at www.futurewoodlands.org.uk

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