Delamere CE Academy plant trees for Queen's Jubilee

Delamere CE Academy pupils planted the trees at St Peter’s Church, to mark 70 years of the Queen on the throne.

The trees, which are varieties of apple, cherry and damson, are from Delamere Nurseries and have been donated by Forestry England.

Children from the Stoney Lane school’s eco club, along with year six wellbeing officers, were invited to plant them at the Delamere-based church by Rev Angela Askwith.  

They form part of her bigger plan to ‘re-wild’ the church grounds, ‘making right of the things we’ve done to spoil the earth’ and creating a haven for animals.

Pupils 'dig deep'

Angela explained: “We are the only church in Cheshire with the Queen as patron, which is quite a privilege, and we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate than for the children to join us for the tree planting. 

“They are also a fantastic addition to our rewilding work using locally sourced plants and environmentally friendly grass that bugs and bees like. 

“We’re making right of the things we’ve done wrong to spoil the earth and to create a haven for animals, including our rare bats and moths which have not been spotted anywhere else. 

“My passion is to one day have trees planted rather than headstones so that our grounds can truly be a place for nature.” 

The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) is a unique tree planting initiative created to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022 which invites people from across the UK to ‘Plant a Tree for the Jubilee’. 

Anyone can take part, whether they are joining in with neighbours, a community group, a school or organisation.

Any trees planted from October 2021 to the end of the jubilee year in 2022 can be part of the QGC.

Headteacher at Delamere Academy Julie Clayton added: “Our children care deeply about the environment, and they took great pleasure in planting trees that will be home to many creatures for years to come.”