CO-OP Funeralcare homes across Cheshire have pledged to plant a tree for every funeral that they carry out.

The initiative forms part of a global regeneration and reforestation programme led by the search engine Ecosia and comes at no extra cost to families who are saying goodbye to their loved one.

Homes involved in the new tree planting initiative include the site in Winsford.

Sam Tyrer, managing director of Co-op Funeralcare, said: "Our colleagues across Cheshire are looking forward to launching their plant-a-tree initiative as part of Ecosia’s global programme.

"We know the climate crisis is a major concern for so many people and we’re constantly looking to innovate our offering so that bereaved families can give their loved one a truly unique goodbye whilst also doing the right thing for the planet."

Whilst Co-op Funeralcare has been carbon neutral since 2011 – and all of its electricity comes from renewable sources – the UK’s largest funeral provider also plays a central role in delivering the Co-op's pledge to achieve net zero status by 2040, ten years ahead of the Government’s own ambition.

Co-op’s new ten-point climate, which was unveiled earlier this year, sets out a blueprint for the group to achieve net zero for its direct and indirect carbon emissions by 2040.

It includes offsetting the greenhouse gas emissions of Co-op products and services, including its food and drink, to achieve carbon neutral status by 2025, price matching Co-op own-brand plant-based foods to meat-based equivalents and creating an innovation fund for carbon reduction research and development initiatives.