For councils
National street tree sponsorship scheme
Empowering residents, raising funds
Trees for Streets is a proven online sponsorship platform that encourages residents and local businesses to support council street tree planting programmes by donating some, or all, of the cost of a new tree. You can use Trees for Streets to host your own street tree sponsorship programme.
The Trees for Streets initiative has provided Tower Hamlets Council with a great opportunity to engage with local residents and businesses, to empower them to be involved in tree planting in their area. Since launching, we have had an overwhelming response in support of the initiative. This has resulted in a large number of donations and has highlighted further opportunities for street tree planting across the Borough.The role of the local community to help safeguard and improve our green infrastructure is vital and this initiative provides a good platform for local authorities and the community to work together and ensure the best possible outcomes.Working with Trees for Streets has been a pleasure and their knowledge and expertise in the sector has been invaluable. This has made the whole journey straightforward and enjoyable.
We worked with several councils and experts to build and develop Trees for Streets, including: Jon Parker
at Arboricultural Association, Croydon Council, Tower Hamlets Council, Hillingdon Council, and are very thankful for all their advice and input.
Our next step was to launch a pilot in May 2021 with
8 councils, offering individual sponsorship:
Bedford Borough Council, City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, Cambridge City Council, and the London Boroughs of Croydon, Haringey, Harrow, Hillingdon and Tower Hamlets.
This has proven very successful and we’re now opening the scheme up to all UK councils for 2022.
By creating awareness, recruiting donors, and raising funds, Trees for Streets amplifies your existing tree planting campaigns. Once you approve a resident’s request for a new street tree (maybe outside their house or in their street), you’ll receive their sponsorship funding and manage the planting through your own planting process.
Trees for Streets helps councils to engage more with their residents and supplement their budgets with public donations, enabling more trees to be planted overall. Here’s an example:
Tree plus materials
Planting
Watering
Tree pit restoration
TOTAL
£100-160
£50-60
£150 -250
£100-250
£300-720
Sponsorship donation
Saving if sponsor waters the tree
TOTAL
£100-350
£170-250
£270-600
| This means more than twice as many trees can be planted for the same budget. |
Trees for Streets supports a range of campaigns and objectives that can empower residents to transform their neighbourhoods. The Trees for Streets platform creates engagement and raises funds while the Council retains full control over their planting programmes–including setting the number and balance of species of trees planted in area, and the level of contribution you want from residents.
Trees for Streets empowers people to make a difference to the world immediately on their doorstep, by encouraging them to take an active role in greening their streets.
Sponsoring a local tree can create a real sense of ownership and a connection with your community. People have really taken the scheme to heart this year, and in several of the pilot council areas we’ve seen residents successfully crowdfunding to raise funds to sponsor trees in their neighbourhood, along busy roads, and outside schools – all on a very local community level.
Trees for Streets, is a charitable enterprise, set up by the charity, Trees for Cities, in partnership, with the civic innovator, Start with Local, supported by the Mayor of London, and funded by the City Bridge Trust and the government’s Green Recovery Challenge Fund.
Do drop us a line if you'd like to find out more hello@treesforstreets.org
