100 new trees planted thanks to £40K funding

Trees on Tower Street

The streets of Rochdale benefitted from the planting of 100 new trees this week, thanks to funding received through the Urban Tree Challenge Fund (UTCF), provided by The Forestry Commission and Defra.

The council has been awarded £40,373 to fund the trees, which have been planted at four locations in Heywood and Rochdale as part of the fund's ambitious plans.

Six different types of native British trees including the upright cherry, red flowering hawthorn, standard white hawthorn, multi-stem silver birch, plus two types of rowan tree were chosen as they are ideal for attracting wildlife and fit well within the local environment.

Broad Lane in Rochdale to the side of Springhill Hospice has benefitted from a mix of 40 trees, with the remaining 60 installed in Heywood around Pilsworth Road, Egerton Street, Tower Street, Broadfield Street and Kay Street.

As part of this work, a handful of trees at the corner of Tower Street had to be removed due to safety reasons, as inspection flagged that some were at risk of collapse. 20 new trees are now planted at this location.

Locations were determined based on the requirements of the fund - to place trees in close proximity to healthcare and educational facilities, coupled with the council’s desire to plant on busy roads to aid noise reduction and further action against air pollution from existing road traffic.

Councillor Liam O’Rourke, cabinet member for environment and facilities, said: “We’re delighted to have received this funding to allocate 100 trees to areas where they are needed most, alongside our much wider tree planting programme across the borough. We’re playing our part to meet the government’s targets of planting 30,000 hectares of trees a year by 2025 across the UK.

“The new trees will not only benefit the local area, bringing health benefits and wellbeing but will also play a crucial role in the fight against climate change, supporting Rochdale’s journey to becoming carbon neutral by 2038.”

The Urban Tree Challenge Fund first opened in 2019 to fund the planting of 44,000 large trees in towns and cities across the country. All trees must be planted in public spaces, so everyone can enjoy and appreciate them for years to come.