Underscoring the rail industry’s commitment to a green and clean future, First TransPennine Express has teamed up with the Forestry Commission to donate tens of thousands of pounds to woodland and conservation projects in northern England and Scotland.
Donating a total sum of £23,000, the money goes to community groups, charities, schools and individuals who allow open access to their land. Participants in the scheme were invited to apply for green grants up to a value of £2000. Grants go to projects near FTPE routes, including the planting of new woodland near Seamer Station and the restoration of the 700 year old grounds at Malton Castle.
St Barnabas Primary School in York applied for £1690 to run a yearlong educational programme, Wild Wednesdays. One of fourteen projects to benefit from Green Grants, Wild Wednesdays will facilitate learning in outdoor spaces and engage children with the wildlife around them.
Says Simon Barber, Environmental Manager for FTPE, ‘This year we received a high standard of entries from worthwhile woodland and conservation projects across the FTPE routes. We’re pleased to have been able to contribute to 14 projects, some of which wouldn’t have been able to go ahead without Green Grants funding and I look forward to seeing how each applicant benefits from the funds.’
First TransPennine Express (FTPE) has been helping to improve the environment and encourage the growth of wildlife since 2007.
