The British Trust for Conservation Volunteers (BTCV) Tree Life Centre has just been awarded a prestigious Planting Places Award. The Centre is a volunteer-run tree nursery based at Grimsbury Farm in Kingswood, which is owned by South Gloucestershire Council.
The BTCV volunteers, who come from many different backgrounds with people aged from their late teens through to sixty plus, have turned the site from a scrubby patch of land located close to the busy ring road into a green oasis of potted plants, raised beds, potting sheds, polytunnels, tool stores and compost bays.
They grow trees and shrubs from seed collected in the area and the plants are then sold on to help fund the project and are planted out into the local community. The council works alongside BTCV and try to support and promote the work they do.
Cllr Heather Goddard, executive member for community services, said: “This is the Big Society in action and I am very pleased that the hard work of the volunteers has been recognised with this award. The council works closely with the Tree Life Centre, providing facilities and administrative support to this worthwhile project that has transformed a corner of Grimsbury Farm into a thriving, productive nursery.”
Ben Hall, manager of the Tree Life Centre, said: “The Planting Places award is a great recognition for all of the volunteer’s efforts. The award values some really important principles of social and environmental sustainability which are important things to publicise and promote. The BTCV Tree Life Centre is a place where people and nature meet and matter, so it’s really nice to be recognised with this award. ”
The Planting Places Awards celebrate and recognise the very best sustainable, community-run green spaces from across the South West.
Related link: The friends of Grimsbury Farm
Source: South Gloucestershire Council
