Public spaces across Leamington, Warwick and Stratford will soon be a lot greener thanks to the Warwickshire County Council Green Shoots Community Climate Change Fund.
The full list of 69 projects set to receive funding from the Green Shoots Fund was announced on 30 July 2021 and the Warwickshire Living Walls project by Forest of Hearts, was one of a number of projects to be given the maximum available funding of £25k.
The Green Shoots funding will enable the Warwickshire Living Walls project to design and install 100 linear metres of green walls at hospital and public access sites in Warwick, Leamington and Stratford-upon-Avon. This will form part of a larger programme of environmental projects, creating six Gardens of Wellbeing across Warwickshire.
The core aims of Warwickshire Living Walls is:
- To design and install 100 linear metres of green walls at hospital and public access sites in Warwick, Leamington and Stratford upon Avon. The species-rich planted walls are designed to absorb particulate matter, Nitrogen Dioxide and reduce the harmful effects of traffic in the atmosphere as well as enhancing biodiversity.
- To demonstrate a proof of concept for sustainable drought resistant vertical gardens which improve wellbeing and provide employment, training and volunteering opportunities for young people; and
- To deliver green therapy sessions to the local community.
The living walls will be planted with a wide range of evergreen plants – recommended for their ability to produce oxygen and capture Nitrogen dioxide – including thyme, oregano, sedum, vinca major and Bergenia. These will become beautiful, long-lasting, green walls for all to enjoy for years to come.
The Forest of Hearts Living Walls will be installed with an innovative self-watering system with each planter having a storage reservoir so that watering is only done once a week during the summer months.
Carole Longden, CEO and Founder of Forest of Hearts, speaking about the Warwickshire Living Walls project, said: “We are delighted to help to boost biodiversity and do our bit for the local community with beautiful vertical gardens and we would like to thank Warwickshire County Council for their generous support.”
Cllr Heather Timms, Portfolio Holder for Environment, Climate and Culture, said: “When we set out our hopes for the Green Shoots Climate Change Fund we asked our community and voluntary sector to come up with new and innovative ways for tackling the climate change emergency in Warwickshire and the Warwickshire Living Walls project by Forest of Hearts met that brief perfectly.
“Living Walls are becoming more common across Europe, particularly in cities, where the issue of limited green space is being addressed by creating beautiful vertical gardens and forests by repurposing existing walls and buildings with a variety of hardy plant life.
“It’s great news for Warwickshire that we will soon be getting our own living walls. The benefits of these walls are profound: they work round the clock to produce oxygen, purify the air and provide residents with a variety of vertical green spaces to benefit their overall wellbeing.”
More information about Forest of Hearts can be found on their website: https://forestofhearts.com/
A full list of projects that will receive Green Shoots Community Climate Change funding can be found here: https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/news/article/2324/green-shoots-will-soon-be-springing-up-across-warwickshire-as-projects-set-to-receive-a-share-of-wcc-s-1-million-community-climate-change-fund-are-announced
For more information about the Fund, visit: www.warwickshire.gov.uk/greenshootsfund
For more information about how Warwickshire County Council is facing the challenges of the climate change emergency, visit: https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/strategies-policies-legislation/facing-challenge-climate-change-warwickshire
Get the latest news about how Warwickshire County Council and partners are facing the challenge of the climate emergency and how you can get involved: http://eepurl.com/hrk-zf