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WILMSLOW RESIDENTS COME TOGETHER TO PLANT 400 TREES.

On Sunday, 17th November around 50 Wilmslow residents of all ages came together to plant a new forest in Wilmslow. The event was arranged by the Tree Group of local charity, Transition Wilmslow.

We had the idea following on from the planting of the ‘Tiny Forest’ at Wilmslow High School which we did last February – that was 600 trees planted very close together, a Japanese idea that creates a very fast growing forest, which absorbs a lot of carbon.

Paddy Johnson of the tree group said, “We decided it would be an incredible project to plant more trees, but spaced apart more regularly, so we could compare the growth of the two forests over the coming years, and see which one does better.”

So that’s exactly what we did – The Woodland Trust provided the group with 400 trees and Wilmslow High School agreed that they could use the land behind the existing Tiny Forest.

Lisa Johnson, who helps to arrange events for Transition Wilmslow, said, “It was really important to us to involve lots of people from the community, so we arranged a family tree planting event. We were absolutely delighted that around 50 people came along to join us on the day, despite the weather being pretty wet.”

“It was incredible to see so many children coming along to get involved – how amazing for them to plant these tiny trees and see their progress over the years, growing with them.”

So, 400 more trees were planted, and now we can all watch the progress of the 1,000 strong two forests over the coming years.

Andrew Backhouse, the Chair of the Charity said, “as the climate is changing, so must we – planting trees to offset carbon emissions and to absorb increased rainfall just makes sense right now.”

Get involved by signing up for the monthly email newsletter. More tree planting projects are happening soon, and everyone in Wilmslow and the surrounding areas are very welcome to get involved. We will be planting around 200 more trees at Rugby Club in early December. Please keep an eye on our website and Facebook page, and do get involved. We are in this together.

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Updated: Oct 12, 2023

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Sunday, 15 October 2pm, Guided Tree Walk

Join our gentle Tree Identification Walk at Meriton Park, Chris Frankland our Chris Frankland, legendary arboricultralist and tree expert, who will lead a gentle walk around Meriton Park talking about how to identify trees, their special features and the importance of the “right tree in the right place”. You may need to wear waterproofs. The event is free if you would like to join in please click here and book a place (there will be approximately 20 places available).


Next Transition Wilmslow’s meeting 19th October at 7.30pm

How do we control the amount of carbon we are pumping in to the atmosphere? John Egan of Progressive Energy will be talking about carbon capture and something his firm is working to pipe carbon emissions from the Peak District where cement and lime works produce it, to the Irish Sea to bury it in old gas fields. Come and join us - tea and biscuits and friendly faces are provided.


Wilmslow Artisan Market: Sat 21st October

We are having a stall and need some volunteers. Come and support our stall encouraging discussions about Taking the Jump (which is an organisation that would like to encourage us all to live with less stuff, and more sustainably). If you can help our for an hour or two on the day, please let Andrew know…..andrew.backhouse@phonecoop.coop Designers for the layout of the stall welcomed in advance too! Do get involved, the more the merrier.


Theatre with a difference: As The World Tipped in St Helens town centre. This is a free event and will take place on Saturday, October 21 as part of Borough of Culture celebrations and it looks incredible! Worth going out to St Helens for, perhaps we could set up lift sharing, let us know if you'd be interested in going:


Repair Cafe: Sat 4th November: URC Chapel Lane Wilmslow. Put the date in your diary - bring your repairs, or get in touch if you are a volunteer repairer (small electrics, bikes, furniture, knitting, textiles etc) or if you can help in the Cafe or by donating homemade cakes and biscuits. Repairs are free, but we are grateful for donations to support the venue and our insurance. We are part of the International Repair Cafe Foundation, and every item we repair is one less item in landfill. Get in touch at repaircafewilmslow@gmail.com.


Want to Save Energy/Reduce your Energy Bills?

Of course you do - our Energy Group are having an ‘Action on Local Energy’ stall at the repair café (see above) to offer advice and to get you booked in for a FREE home energy survey. Come along and chat to them.


Round Table Bonfire: 4th November, evening: Would you be able to help with the Round Table Annual Bonfire on November 4th either marshalling or taking payments on the gate? If you can do this on behalf of TW, the Round Table will make a donation to us after the event. If you can help, please email Paul on wilmslowroundtable@gmail.com


CAT Conference: a weekend of inspiration and action

Join the Centre for Alternative Technology in November for the return of their annual conference – a weekend filled with inspiration, insight and practical action. From Friday 10th to Sunday 12th November, CAT members, students, staff and volunteers will be coming together for a festival of ideas, including talks, tours, workshops, discussions and more. https://cat.org.uk/events/cat-at-50-our-annual-members-conference/


Other Things of Interest:


Heat Resilience Plan for Wilmslow

In July 2022, Cheshire experienced the highest temperature on record, with afternoon temperatures peaking around 38 C. With climate change, this may become more frequent and even exceeded. We have an opportunity to increase local resilience to heatwaves by sharing insights and concerns that can help shape local policies and strategies. Key issues include cooling, shelter, and public health, particularly for vulnerable residents. We want to build a network of people interested in contributing to development of a Heat Resilience Plan for Wilmslow. If you’d like to help take this idea forward, get in touch: elaine.evans.business@gmail.com


Lindow Moss: This is a couple of years old, but might be of interest.

You will be hearing much more about next year's incredible Lindow Moss event over the coming weeks.


Our very own Sarah Bridle is in conversation with George Monbiot in Manchester this month, more details here on when and how to book:


Sycamore Gap: did you feel absolutely heartbroken about the felling of the iconic tree at Hadrian's Wall? I'm sure we all did. However, every time we hear the whirr of a chainsaw cutting down a tree in Wilmslow, we feel angry and sad. If you want to be involved in not only saving trees, but planting trees, get involved with our Tree Group. Just reply to this email and we'll point you in the right direction.


Cheshire East Climate Alliance

Across Cheshire East we have a climate alliance, representing Congleton, Macclesfield, Disley, Bollington, Nantwich, Audlem and others, to push the council and government to take action and to share what we are doing and what is working. Currently Andrew Backhouse and Flo Collier are the reps we have, but it would be good to swap over to at least one new person. Is anyone else keen to work on this? About one evening meeting every 2 months, usually on zoom. Let us know.


WE NEED YOU - we'd love more people of all ages to get involved in all the different things we have going on. If you want to get involved, have any ideas or just have a little bit of time to give us, just get in touch.


Next Meeting Thursday, 19th October 7.30pm - come along, all welcome.


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We've just published our latest Annual Report and you can read it here - please click on the link to download a copy.




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Volunteers planting the Tiny Forest at Wilmslow High School

Wow! We have had the most amazing two weeks and have so much to celebrate! Come along to our Transition Wilmslow Monthly Meeting and AGM on Thursday, 16 February, 7.15pm for a 7.30 start at the Quaker Meeting House, Bourne Street and hear all about it! This month we have planted a Tiny Forest at the High School, seen the start of the latest phase of restoration on Lindow Moss, had a fantastic workshop at The Guild and out on the Moss (“Window on Lindow”), put up our new polytunnel at our Oakenclough Community Market Garden and pruned the trees in our Meriton Park Orchard…..AND….we have achieved Charitable Status which will allow us to do so much more!

Our meeting will include a brief AGM, with Chair’s and Treasurer’s reports, and will be followed by our Guest Speaker, Cllr Craig Browne, Deputy Leader of Cheshire East Council. Craig will be talking about Cheshire East Council and it’s work on our behalf, and is happy to take questions on the environment and climate change. Do come along and join the discussion.

If you can’t make the meeting but would like to be more involved in Transition Wilmslow we would love to hear from you. Perhaps you would like to register your interest in becoming a Trustee of our new charity in the future, help with grant applications or looking after our accounts? or become more involved in one of our groups?

March 4th is our next Repair café at the URC (10-1, last repair in at 12.30). Would you like to be one of our expert repairers? Could you help in the café or donate a homemade cake or biscuits? Email repaircafewilmslow@gmail.com. Wilmslow Town Council is organising an event on Sunday 7th May and is inviting local groups to have a stall to publicise their work and hopefully get more volunteers. Could you help with one or more stalls on that day? Monday 8th May is “The Big Help Out” and we will be encouraging people to come along and help at Oakenclough. Let us know if there are any groups you know who would like to give a hand, or if you would like more details. We look forward to seeing you on Thursday. There will be cake! Best wishes from the Transition Wilmslow Team.

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