The Great Trees in the Clyst Valley project was awarded the Bicton College Pride of Devon Environmental Award last week.

The Pride of Devon Awards 2019, sponsored by Bicton College, were held on Friday 17th May at the Vice Presidents' Pavillion at the Devon County Show. 130 people gathered for the annual event, organised by Radio Exe, to recognise the outstanding community heroes from across the county. Project officers Simon Bates and Jon Freeman, collected the Environmental Award, which was supported by Coastal Recycling. 

Great Trees in the Clyst Valley helps people in East Devon learn about and plant trees. With much-needed homes and employment sites being built, the population is growing. That leads to pressure on the environment. Great Trees helps people to mitigate the impact of growth by mobilising them to create new woodlands and hedges and restore parkland landscapes. It is funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund and delivered by East Devon District Council.

Jon Freeman, Great Trees in the Clyst Valley Project Officer said:

We are delighted and honoured to receive this prestigious award!

Thanks to all the volunteers' hard work and commitment, we have planted over 2,000 trees, recorded the locations of ancient trees and planted orchards.

We're now planning public open space in the form of a new regional park and we need people to share their views. 2019 is the Year of Green Action, so we hope this will encourage people to complete our short survey https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/7KBKFDL

Mark Williams, Chief Executive of East Devon District Council said:

Congratulations to everyone involved. Without the volunteers hard work, this would not have happened.

I saw for myself Simon and Jon with volunteers planting 2,200 native trees and hedgerow plants. Over time they will become a landmark in the Clyst Valley and East Devon.

We are now looking forward to the creation of a regional park to provide green space for local people to get outdoors and enjoy. I urge people to take just four minutes of their time to answer a few questions about its formation. To complete the survey, visit www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/7KBKFDL

Richard Marsh, Director, Coastal Recycling, said:

Protecting the worlds diminishing resources and educating future generations on this topic is something we at Coastal Recycling feel very passionate about. Projects such as Great Trees in the Clyst Valley play such an important role in doing this and the team have illustrated huge passion and drive in truly making a difference. By engaging people of all ages they have successfully planted hundreds of trees and taught the next generation important information about how to care for our environment through fun and interactive events. We are very proud to sponsor the Radio Exe Bicton College Pride of Devon Environmental Award and it was great to see such a fantastic project recognised and win. Huge Congratulations goes to the whole team, we can't wait to see what's next!