Planting roots in the community

Students at the University of Exeter have planted 200 trees on the main campus as part of a volunteering scheme. Native trees have been planted outside the sports centre to help screen floodlights from sports pitches, a cause for concern for neighbours in Argyll Road. Scrub vegetation was also planted to benefit wildlife and enhance biodiversity. Money for the planting came from StreetWise funding, which the University uses to support projects which link students with the local community.

Emily Stevens, project leader for Footprints, told the Express and Echo newspaper “It’s nice for the University and the community to work together and have a proper relationship. It’s a good way of getting diverse people on the campus to volunteer. They didn’t need any particular skills – they just had to dig a hole and put something in it – it was good fun.”