The Woodland Trust: Young People’s Forest
A lasting legacy of the #iWill movement to promote youth social action
‘Support from Pears and partners has been a game-changer for the Woodland Trust. It has enabled us to create the first Young People’s Forest and given us a springboard, enabling and inspiring us to work more with younger people. I’m proud to say youth and younger people are increasingly present at all levels and in all parts of the Woodland Trust. The Pears Team have been there at every step of the way, supporting us through both opportunities and challenges. Together we are changing lives along with the landscape, building legacies that help shore up the future for nature and people.’Dr Darren Moorcroft, Chief Executive
The Woodland Trust
“It’s been a real privilege to work with the team at the Woodland Trust over the last six years, supporting their youth engagement work from the initial acquisition and creation of the Young People’s Forest, to now embedding young people at the centre of their work and organisational culture. They are a great example of how leadership, partnerships and organisational commitment can make existing social action opportunities and assets more inclusive and accessible.”Bridget Kohner, Deputy Director
Pears Foundation
Partner since: 2018
Core funding: Youth and schools work
Project funding: Creation of the young people’s forest
Invested: £2.4million
We want to create opportunities for young people to make a positive and meaningful difference to their communities and the environment, at the same time gaining new skills and improving their wellbeing. Young people often tell us that they want to take part in green action. This includes activities like environmental volunteering, fundraising for green spaces, and advocating for zero plastic waste.
In 2018, as part of the Pears #iWill Fund investment from the National Lottery Community Foundation and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, the Foundation had the opportunity to begin an exciting partnership with the Woodland Trust. A former open cast mining site near Heanor in Derbyshire became available, and along with it the chance to create the first Young People’s Forest in the UK.
Today, the Young People’s Forest is a thriving woodland, with 250,000 trees planted by the children and young people who have helped to shape it and who continue to look after it, making the decisions as to how the site develops, creating a unique forest of over 400 acres for themselves and their community.
Following on from our partnership on the Young People’s Forest, we have been delighted to continue to support the Woodland Trust in their wider youth engagement work, core funding their wide range of activities for children and young people.