Mayor puts in the spade work to help create community forest
Thousands of trees are set to be planted at a former golf course as part of plans to create a North East Community Forest and support the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
The former Elemore golf course in Hetton is set to bounce back to life with the planting of over 15,000 native trees and shrubs over the coming months.
When the plans are complete, the Elemore Green Space and Social Enterprise Development, which is being led by the Elemore Park project, will be home to various businesses.
These include a cafe, a garden centre that will grow vegetables and plants, a visitor and exhibition centre and a series of “pocket forests” that will be owned by schools and community groups.
The first of the trees was planted last month by the Mayor of Sunderland, Cllr Harry Trueman, who was joined by Wing Commander David L Harris, as well as by the Mayoress Cllr Dorothy Trueman and local Hetton ward councillors.
Representatives from Trees for Cities, the North East Community Forest (NECF), Elemore Park Project Group as well as Bishopwearmouth Nurseries were also in attendance.
Cllr Claire Rowntree, deputy leader of Sunderland City Council and ward councillor for Hetton, hopes that the former golf course can become a popular destination for people across Wearside to socialise.
She said: “We’ve been working closely with residents over the past 18 months or so to shape our plans to transform the golf course site into ‘Elemore Park’.
"It will not only see the area restored to its natural beauty, but also become a popular destination where residents can meet and socialise.
“At the heart of this are plans to turn the former clubhouse into a community-run café, garden centre, visitor centre and community space, with the garden centre and café also supporting training for adults with disabilities.
“So it’s great to see so many members of the community signing up to get involved in the tree planting which, along with this development, will see us really bring this much-loved area back to life.”
The event was one of many planting ceremonies taking place as part of the Queen’s Green Canopy which is an initiative running across the UK that invites people to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee”.
Cllr Trueman highlighted that the project will contribute towards making Sunderland carbon neutral by 2040.
He commented: “The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee is a truly momentous occasion and we’re proud as a city to be playing a key part in marking the event by participating in the Queen’s Green Canopy.
“As a city, Sunderland has made a commitment to become carbon neutral by 2040 and initiatives like this will play an important part in helping us achieve our ambitions.”
Members of the local community have also taken part in a planting event that saw 570 trees added to the site with further events to follow.
If you want further information on Sunderland City Council’s Low Carbon Framework, then you can visit: https://www.sunderland.gov.uk/lowcarbon