Extension to popular Pipe Hall Farm Woods hangs in the balance...
A huge £185,000 fundraising appeal to extend Pipe Hall Farm Woods near Lichfield is close to success - but needs a final boost.
The Woodland Trust announced ambitious plans at the end of January to extend the freely-accessible 128-acre wood, west of Lichfield, by another 30 acres.
The available land is seen as a rare opportunity to buffer and extend Pipe Hall’s existing new native woodland – already much loved and used by people far and wide.
An original end-of-April deadline was extended to allow further fundraising Now, thanks to phenonemenal local support and the supportive landowner who granted the Trust additional time, the conservation charity is very close to securing all of the funding.
But the clock is ticking and the challenge is well and truly on, says Laura Judson head of regional development for the Trust:
"We are so nearly there, but we have to call for a last extra effort." she said. "People can even text us money or send us a pledge, and it all adds up."
"It was inspiring to see the passion and support from so many people who joined our meeting in Burntwood, back in January. These people have voted with their own pockets and the local appeal has raised over £30,000, which has been boosted by a number of local funding organisations and charitable trusts."
"We have a number of applications hanging in the balance, so the more we can raise locally the more impact and chance of success we have with those."
"We are now over 80% of the way to being able to plant this vital new woodland and we are not giving up. We have a rare opportunity to extend the wood and plant thousands of new trees and wildflowers, with the help of school children across Staffordshire. Plots of land like this one simply do not crop often, so it makes this potential even more unique."
No matter what time of day anyone visits Pipe Hall Wood, there are always visitors walking, whether they are walking their dogs or simply enjoying the Staffordshire countryside. Entrance to Pipe Hall Wood is free and it is open at all times for visitors to enjoy – a woodland haven in the midst of our busy lives. People from as far afield as Yorkshire have been known to the visit the wood regularly. You can now even send a text and this will make a donation to help the appeal – a first for the Woodland Trust in England.
"Pipe Hall Farm Woods are already one of the most visited, loved and valued woods we own – it is great to see so many people enjoying their woodland. Local people have been very generous and have increased their own pledges to ensure we are successful and we are determined to get there. To make a text donation of £3 simply text PARKING to 84424. It is not too late to get involved by text or pledge, both could be crucial to the success of the project."
Anyone wanting to find out more or make a pledge should contact Laura Judson at the Woodland Trust on 08452 935761 or email her at laurajudson@woodlandtrust.org.uk
NOTE:
The Woodland Trust will receive your donation net of charges applied by your mobile network operators and processing fee(s)
Notes to editors
For media enquiries contact:
The Woodland Trust Press Office on 01476 581121, email: media@woodlandtrust.org.uk
The Woodland Trust:
The Woodland Trust is the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity. It has 300,000 members and supporters.
The Trust has three key aims: i) to enable the creation of more native woods and places rich in trees ii) to protect native woods, trees and their wildlife for the future iii) to inspire everyone to enjoy and value woods and trees
Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering approximately 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres). Access to its sites is free.