Spout House Woodland, Huncoat
About Spout House Community Woodland
In early 2014, members of the community turned out to create a new community woodland at Spout House in Huncoat.
Children from Huncoat Primary School enthusiastically planted up their own dedicated area of the woodland within walking distance of the school. Three classes and their eco group came out in turn, learned about the trees and then planted around two hundred trees.
In an amazing response to the extensive local and media publicity, hoards of people arrived from all directions for the Woodland Activity Day on 15 March 2014.
It was like a mexican wave of people sweeping across the field, planting at least a thousand trees in a single morning.
With a fun and positive atmosphere, young families, groups, footballers and quite a few elders, came from all parts of the Huncoat area and also many places further afield including Darwen, Burnley and St Annes.
Other lasting legacies were a beautiful owl carved on a post by a chainsaw craftsman and young people enjoying the art of willow weaving and path improvements providing good links to the surrounding areas.
Over time the woodland will form an attractive natural oakwood.
The project was a collaboration between Hyndburn Borough Council, Lancashire County Council and Global Renewables, under the Woodlands from Waste programme which so far has planted over 100,000 trees across Lancashire. Carbon absorbed by the growth of the trees will help to balance the carbon emissions from the activities needed to dispose of our rubbish – so the project is good for the environment in lots of different ways.
The project has received support from a national organisation, the Forestry Commission, who has given a £28,000 grant from the English Woodland Grant Scheme.
If you would like more information about the project please contact Anne Hourican, Senior Environmental Initiatives Officer on 01254 388 111 or anne.hourican@hyndburnbc.gov.uk.