Residents on a Coventry street are benefiting from three new street trees and are helping to give them the best possible start in life - despite the hot weather.
Three native trees have been planted in Grantham Street using West Midlands Combined Authority money as part of a wider project to support retrofit and environmental improvements in the Hillfields area.
Grantham Street is a typical 1930’s street – it has on street parking and homes that front the pavement. However, new planting techniques have enabled three trees to be added to the street. In time the trees will add areas of shade helping to cool the street as well as providing new habitats for nature.
With the ongoing high temperatures and lack of rain, the trees have needed some extra care, and so people living on Grantham Street in Hillfields have worked together, and with Council staff, to water them regularly and keep an eye on them.
Thanks to their efforts, the young trees are putting down strong roots and will soon be repaying the favour to local residents – keeping them cool in the summer and improving the local air quality.
Councillor Lynnette Kelly, Coventry City Council's Cabinet Member for jobs, regeneration and climate change, said:
It is wonderful to see residents coming together to care for these newly planted trees.
"Young trees need extra support during periods of hot weather, and the willingness of local people to help water them will make a real difference to their long-term health and success.
"These trees will bring benefits to the community for many years to come, providing shade, improving air quality and making the street an even more attractive place to live. I would like to thank everyone who has volunteered their time to help give them the best possible start in life.“Thanks to some grant funding from the WMCA we plan to also make saplings available for the community to plant in their own garden so in the next few years the area should feel a lot greener. Local people have also been benefiting from free retrofit including solar panels and heat pumps – so I would urge anyone living in Hillfields to check if they qualify for this free, no stings support.
The work forms part of the Hillfields Neighbourhood Improvements, an exciting project that has local people at its heart and is focussed on co-designing a healthier, more sustainable future for all. Read more on the Council website.
It is also part of the Council’s work to combat the causes and effects of climate change, increasing the number of trees across the city, creating greener streets, supporting biodiversity and making a greener, healthier city for all.