On Monday 9 September, Veolia Orchard opened for applications once again. This scheme invites schools to increase biodiversity and become a part of Veolia’s family tree by growing their own strawberries or nurturing their own orchard of fruit trees.
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Since 2023, Veolia Westminster has delivered 30 strawberry plants to three schools across the borough. This local network is just a small part of a whole family of 1,085 trees and 780 strawberry plants steadily growing at 291 schools across the UK.
This initiative launched in 2022, with fruit trees donated to schools in order to give young people a chance to experience the benefits of engaging with nature as well as improving local biodiversity. Building on its initial success, in 2023 the scheme expanded to include strawberry plants, ensuring that urban schools with limited outdoor green space could participate, such as those in the City of Westminster.
Each orchard comprises either five trees or ten strawberry plants per school, an individual component of a much wider network. Schools can apply online from 9 September to 8 November 2024. Successful candidates will then hear back from 25 November with deliveries taking place in spring 2025. Schools can opt for an interactive planting event where Veolia’s experts guide students through their planting whilst educating them on the orchard’s long-term benefits to the community and environment.
Pascal Hauret, Municipal Managing Director at Veolia said: “The Veolia Orchard scheme is about growing more than just fruit; it’s about cultivating a love of nature in our future environmental ambassadors. I am especially happy to see this initiative continue to flourish in urban schools where there are typically fewer opportunities to interact with the environment. Not only are we boosting biodiversity by introducing new fruit tree species, creating habitats for pollinators, and enhancing the genetic diversity of cities with urban farming, we’re planting the seeds for a more sustainable future.”
