Igniting Innovation FAQs

You do not need a fully formed idea and remember that there are no 'wrong' ideas either. Igniting Innovation is designed to help you shape your ideas into a reality.

Not at all. Igniting Innovation is designed to help young people explore new ideas, regardless of their background or experience. You'll be supported throughout the programme by a mentor, the Woodland Trust youth team and a range of experts who can help you bring your idea to life. We also offer training and development opportunities to build your skills and confidence along the way.

You'll be supported every step of the way by:

• the youth team

• a mentor

• other young people in your cohort

• Woodland Trust staff and experts.

England

• Northern England (Northern Forest halo): stretches across Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield and Hull, connecting urban areas with new woodland and greener corridors.

• Sherwood and the Midlands: around Nottinghamshire, focusing on ancient woodland restoration and veteran trees.

• Eastern Claylands: covers south Norfolk, central and east Suffolk, and north Essex, where new woodland can link up scattered existing woods.

• Weald and Downs (South East): covering parts of Kent, Sussex and the South Downs National Park, these ancient woodland landscapes have huge restoration potential.

• Cornwall, Devon, Exmoor (rainforest recovery): coastal and upland areas where temperate rainforest fragments survive and are being restored and expanded.

• Cumbria (upland restoration zones): areas around the Lake District and wider Cumbria where natural processes, river catchments and upland woodlands are being reconnected.

Scotland

• Scotland’s rainforest (west coast): a band running through Argyll, Lochaber and the west Highlands – one of the UK’s most important rainforest zones where humid, moss rich woodland thrives.

Wales

• Dyfi to Dwyryd (Mid Wales): a landscape between the Dyfi and Dwyryd rivers, where wooded valleys, cultural heritage and nature recovery come together.

Northern Ireland

• Faughan Valley (Northwest): a cluster of ancient woodlands near Derry/Londonderry, where restoring connected woodland networks is a major priority.

Your mentor won't tell you what to do. Instead, they'll be a sounding board for your ideas, helping you to think things through without judgement. Your mentor will share their experiences, while providing guidance to avoid dead ends and spot exciting opportunities.

Yes! Groups of up to four people can work together on one project.

Think carefully about how you want to approach the year-long commitment to your project, as both individual and group applications have their benefits and challenges. Some previous participants valued working in pairs or small groups, as it helped share the workload and bring ideas to life collaboratively. Others found that working in a group could make it more difficult to manage relationships, coordinate schedules and balance contributions.

For the year ahead, we encourage you to carefully consider what will work best for you before applying. Keep in mind:

• how you prefer to work (independently or collaboratively)

• the time and commitment you can realistically give

• whether you have trusted peers you can effectively partner with

• how you will manage responsibilities and communication.

There is no right or wrong approach; what matters most is choosing the set‑up that will help you to stay motivated, organised and able to deliver your idea successfully. Only teams of up to four will be accepted.

Your application will be scored against the criteria listed on the Igniting Innovation webpage. If you are shortlisted, you will receive an email with feedback from the judges and an invitation to interview. Your interview will ask further questions about your application, idea and vision, as well as how you have used feedback from the initial round. Once all shortlisted applicants have been interviewed and informed of the outcome, successful applicants will become the 2026 cohort and begin the onboarding process for their project.

We receive a high volume of amazing ideas every year. Unfortunately, not all of them can be selected. If your application is unsuccessful, we strongly encourage you to work on your idea and apply again next year. You will also be sent additional volunteering opportunities at the Woodland Trust.

Absolutely! This is your idea and you are the project manager. Our role is to give you a platform to begin your journey and bring your idea to life.

Even if your idea doesn't work out, you’ve still succeeded. Igniting Innovation is about learning, testing and improving, not perfection. Every idea teaches you something valuable – that’s the whole point.

Success looks different for every project, and you'll help define what it means for yours. As the project lead, you'll set the goals you're working towards. Success isn't just about the final outcome. It's also about what you learn along the way, the skills you develop, the connections you make and the impact your project has.

There is no set number of hours you are expected to contribute. This programme is designed to be flexible. You will be managing your project around your usual commitments, so it’s important to think realistically about what you can take on.

Previous participants have shared that projects often take more time and effort than they initially expected. We’d encourage you to plan for this and allow yourself some extra capacity where possible.

Remember that your availability may change throughout the year. You might have times when you can give more energy, and times when you need to step back – and that’s okay! What matters most is that you manage your project in a way that feels realistic and sustainable for you.

Absolutely! Before the project planning stage, you'll get the chance to meet the other winners in your cohort and start building connections. It's a great opportunity to share ideas, learn from each other and even explore potential collaborations.

You'll also be invited to our annual alumni event, where you can connect with past and current participants, grow your network and discover new opportunities to work together.

The truth is that every project faces challenges at some point. If things don't go to plan, you'll have support from your mentor, the youth team and other experts who can help you work through challenges, adapt your approach and keep moving forward.

Definitely! In fact, many projects continue far beyond the programme. Igniting Innovation is designed to help you get your idea off the ground, and we're always excited to see projects grow and evolve long after the programme has finished.

This programme supports young people (aged 16 to 25) with an interest in agroforestry and nature-friendly farming to explore new ideas, test out nature‑positive approaches and connect with others who care about the future of farming. You don’t need to be an ‘innovator’ already, the programme helps you to become one.

This category is open to anyone aged 16 to 25 who wants to explore new ways of farming that support nature and people. This could be young farmers, agriculture students, early-career land managers, or anyone who wants to work with the land. If the category calls to you and your idea fits our brief, we want to hear from you!

No, you’ll learn all about agroforestry as you go if this is what your project focusses on. Igniting Innovation is a space to explore agroforestry, regenerative farming and nature‑positive ideas, whether you’re brand new to them or already experimenting.

This year, we will fund two youth‑led farming projects. Each winning project will receive £5,000 to help explore an innovative idea.

Yes. Innovation isn’t about being flashy or high-tech. It’s about spotting a problem and wanting to make it better. If you care about farming, nature or your community, you’re already halfway there.

We are especially keen to hear ideas that align with one or more of these goals:

• explore how trees and nature can create new opportunities for farms, including generating income, building resilience and supporting biodiversity

• increase the number of trees on farms to boost productivity and sustainability

• help more farmers and local communities to understand and support agroforestry and nature-friendly farming solutions.

But this is by no means an exhaustive list and we are happy to hear about any nature-positive farming ideas.

Discover more about the Woodland Trust's work with agroforestry.

After completing the programme, you'll become part of the Igniting Innovation alumni network. This gives you the opportunity to:

• stay connected

• share your learning

• influence Woodland Trust strategy

• act as an advocate for young farmers shaping the future of farming.