Pictured at the existing community orchard in Ockwells Park is the Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Community Partnerships, Public Protection and Maidenhead, Councillor Simon Werner, and Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Biodiversity and Windsor Town Council, Councillor Karen Davies.
Community groups, schools, landowners and residents are invited to apply for funding available to create their very own community orchards and give a boost to nature in the Royal Borough.
The Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead’s Sustainability Team has successfully secured £27,000 from the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affair’s Coronation Living Heritage Fund.
The fund celebrates the Coronation of King Charles III and was specifically established to support local tree planting initiatives. Applications are open until Wednesday 24th January. Grants of up to £6,000 are available. To apply, please visit https://rbwmtogether.rbwm.gov.uk/orchards
It is anticipated that the funding will enable the creation of around five modestly-sized community orchards. Along with allocating the funding, the council will provide expertise and practical advice and support to those who are successful in getting funding for orchards on private or public land.
The Council will also be able to make site visits and offer expertise in selecting appropriate planting sites and planning successful plantings, as well as support those who are successful in monitoring and maintaining their orchards. There will be the opportunity to link successful applicants with corporate and community groups to offer them volunteering opportunities to help plant and fence the new orchards.
A council panel will consider each application carefully and decide which have been successful. Planting is expected to take place during February and March. The council aims to prioritise the schemes with the highest chances of practical success in establishing the trees over the coming years, those with greatest value to wildlife and biodiversity and providing the most cultural and social value in terms of likely community engagement with the orchards. Councillor Karen Davies, Cabinet member for climate change and biodiversity, said: “I’m really pleased that we’ve been successful and been awarded funding to enable this project, which not only supports our climate change and biodiversity ambitions, but is a wonderful way to get the community involved in a fun and healthy activity.
“We know from historical data that as a Borough, we have lost many of our historic orchards, along with the cultural value and niche habitats they offer. This scheme can act as a counterweight to that decline and gives us the opportunity to improve our environment for people and nature. Planting trees helps to sequester carbon dioxide, enhances biodiversity, and creates green spaces for both residents and visitors to enjoy. The borough is the lead authority for Berkshire’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy, and this scheme can align with that emerging strategy, helping us to promote habitat creation.
“We’ve planted more than 20,000 trees around the borough in the last few years, but we’d like to expand this more widely and offer more residents the chance to get outdoors and make a positive contribution to their environment, while also learning more about wildlife and conservation.”
If you don’t have online access, you are welcome to use the public-access computers available at all local libraries, where staff are happy to help you get online if needed. If you require paper copies of the application form these are also available from all libraries upon request.
********
The Coronation Living Heritage Fund supported by £2.5m in funding has been made available through Defra’s £758m Nature for Climate Fund to allow county, unitary, metropolitan, London borough, district and city local authorities the chance to apply for up to two grants for projects ranging between £10,000 and £50,000. The funding will support the development of micro woods and community orchards and commemorate the King’s Coronation. Funds can be distributed across projects in their area.
Through the England Trees Action Plan and supported by the £758m Nature for Climate Fund Defra will help to transform the treescape and the forestry sector helping to put the UK on track to meet net zero targets, reverse the decline in nature and support economic growth.