Residents have until early January to sponsor a tree to be grown in a location of their choosing, reports Grace Howarth, Local Democracy Reporter

A london street with trees — Photo by Igor Sporynin on Unsplash

Barnet Council is inviting residents to join its tree-planting initiative as part of its work to become a ‘net zero’ borough by 2042.

Residents have until early January to sponsor a tree to be grown in a location of their choosing.

The initiative, now in its second year, is a partnership between the council and the charity Trees for Streets and forms part of Barnet’s wider work to tackle the climate emergency.

Residents can sponsor a street tree, which will be planted outside residents’ homes or in their neighbourhood. The council will create a tree pit if there isn’t one already.

Another option is to sponsor a ‘celebration tree’ which will be planted in one of the borough’s parks. Both types will be maintained by the council, but the local authority is encouraging residents who sponsor street trees to also help water them, especially during summer.

The trees will be aged between five and seven years old and be three to four metres in height. The cost to sponsor a street tree is £250 and ‘celebration tree’ £400.

Under the initiative, more than 100 trees have been planted so far. This season’s planting season starts next month and continues through to spring.

In response to the initiative’s launch, Alan Schneiderman, cabinet member for environment and climate change, said: “Trees make us happy, make our air cleaner, provide sanctuaries for wildlife and protect us from flooding.

“We’re delighted to have launched this scheme in partnership with the charity project Trees for Streets to tackle the climate emergency and make life better for all our residents.”

For more information about the ‘Trees for Streets’ programme and to apply for tree planting:
Visit Lets fill Barnet with trees – Trees for Streets

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