Stonehouse Projects
Stonehouse Community Arboretum
The Stonehouse Community Arboretum includes all of the trees on public and private land,
in the urban and rural parts of Stonehouse.
Ultimately its intention is to create a diverse collection of trees, responsibly and sustainably planted and cared for, which will deliver a wide range of benefits to the Stonehouse community and encourage people to visit the town. It is there for everyone – for current and future generations.
The Stonehouse Community Arboretum Management Plan sets out the way in which Stonehouse Town Council will care for its trees, and invites other landowners to take the same approach. It was written with input from arboricultural professionals around the world and was subject to public consultation, before being adopted by the Town Council in September 2021 and launched in October 2021.
Stonehouse Community Arboretum is receiving national attention
Stonehouse now features in three national/international best practice documents, including one produced by the UK government.
Stonehouse has recently been mentioned in the new Trees & Design Action Group (TDAG) document Trees, Planning and Development: A Guide for Delivery.
Previously, the Arboretum Management Plan has been mentioned as best practice in the recent document from the Department for Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Tree Council – ‘A Trees and Woodlands Strategy Toolkit for local authorities.
Stonehouse has also been included as a case study in the new London Tree Officers Association/Arboricultural Association publication ‘Sustainable Water Management: Trees are Part of the Solution’.
In addition, John Parker CEO of the Stonehouse-based Arboricultural Association, has featured the Stonehouse Project in presentations around the world.
Innovative Trees & Woodland Strategy Toolkit
An innovative Trees & Woodland Toolkit launched to maximise benefits of trees and woodlands in communities across England
The ‘Trees and Woodland Strategy Toolkit’, developed in collaboration with Stonehouse Town Council, was launched to empower Local Authorities to create their own strategies and action plans for trees, to build resilient treescapes across the country.
The Toolkit will help Local Authorities plan how they can meet net-zero targets by increasing tree planting across the country, reversing the decline in nature and supporting economic growth.
The Toolkit will continue to be updated to develop and adapt to the Local Authority needs.
Stonehouse on the international ‘Urban Forest’ stage
Stonehouse was in the spotlight on the international stage this week when John Parker, gave a talk at the World Forum on Urban Forests in Washington DC.
His talk – Stonehouse: Growing a town into an Arboretum – told conference delegates about the creation and management of Stonehouse Community Arboretum and the ultimate intention, in collaboration with Stonehouse Town Council, to create a diverse collection of trees, which are responsibly and sustainably planted to deliver a range of benefits to the community and encourage people to visit the town.
John led a very informative walk as part of Stonehouse Walking Festival – A tour of the Stonehouse Community Arboretum.
On this walk, John gave a tour of some of the most interesting trees in the parks and streets of the town, discussing the importance of trees to people and nature, and some of the social history of trees and green space in Stonehouse.
The image left below shows ‘The Oak’ on the Park Estate Green, which John thinks is the oldest tree in Stonehouse. Photos courtesy of Stonehouse Walking Festival.
There are more tree walks scheduled in this year’s festival. The Walk Schedule can be found here.