Government plans ‘major expansion’ of woodlands across England

The government has unveiled plans to invest millions of pounds to expand woodland across England.

The investment will “create larger, well-designed and more diverse woodlands”, the government said.

Around 2,300 hectares of trees – equivalent to around 3,220 football pitches – will be planted as part of this year’s £44.2m funding allocation.

England’s 13 Community Forests, including the Humber and Mersey Forests, as well as partners including the Northern Forest and Great Northumberland Forest, are all set to benefit from the funding.

Local authorities will also benefit from further support through the development of the new LA Tree and Woodland Strategies toolkit, launching in September in partnership with the Tree Council, Fera, Forestry Commission and Forest Research. This will help to build local capacity to plan for new trees and woodlands.

Lord Zac Goldsmith, Forestry Minister, said: “As well as tackling the impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss, this significant funding will create diverse treescapes across the country and improve the health and wellbeing of local communities by giving them more opportunities to enjoy nature on their doorstep.”