Pupils put down roots

Pupils from Derby Grammar School have been helping to plant free trees supplied by a woodland conservation charity.

They recently took the classroom outdoors after the school successfully applied for a ‘copse pack’ of rowan, silver birch and wild cherry trees from the Woodland Trust after hearing about the scheme from support campaigns on social media.

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Rebecca Hill, forest school leader, said: “It was a wonderful opportunity to support the boys’ well-being, while contributing to the trust’s bid to plant 50 million more trees by 2025, to help tackle climate change.”

Woodland Trust commissioned research shows that primary age children who plant trees felt that they were ‘doing their bit’ to help the environment and remember it as a significant experience.

Karen Letten, schools and community engagement manager at the Woodland Trust, said: “Trees create inspiring learning spaces – natural, sustainable, and dynamic outdoor classrooms where pupils can mix mud with maths and spades with science, while connecting with nature and having fun.

“It’s these lessons that the children will remember well into adulthood.”