Sheffield trees initiative is a welcome step as city looks to rebuild after felling scandal - The Yorkshire Post says

While there is a lot of work to be done to rebuild trust after protestors were vindicated in the report by Sir Mark Lowcock, it is important that Sheffield begins to restore what makes the city such a pleasant place to live.

Therefore the fundraising campaign to plant 135 trees in a deprived part of the city is to be welcomed.

Nether Edge and Sharrow Sustainable Transformation (NESST) has secured the offer of match funding from Aviva’s Save Our Wild Isles Community Fund.

The project aims to plant as many street trees as it can in deprived areas of Highfield and Lowfield in South West Sheffield.

The latest initiative from NESST has coordinated sufficient funding to plant 135 additional street trees in the Nether Edge, Sharrow, Sharrow Vale and Carter Knowle areas of Sheffield, with 55 further trees funded to be planted this coming winter.

This has come partly in response to the city’s tree-felling scandal, with Paul Selby, the chairman of NESST, saying: “None of our efforts to plant 135 street trees would have been possible without the collaborative support of Sheffield City Council or Amey.”

Amey was the contractor responsible for the felling of trees during the scandal and Sheffield City Council’s role has been well documented in the scandal. The fact that both the council and Amey are supporting this project is a welcome sign that the city is taking steps towards reconciliation.