Barnet Council, in partnership with environmental charity Earthwatch Europe and local tech firm Pure Data Centres, yesterday (March 26) brought together hundreds of volunteers to plant 1,800 trees, creating three new ‘Tiny Forests’ in Mutton Brook, East Finchley.
Barnet’s three new forests were planted over the course of one day thanks to volunteers - including children from Brookland Infant and Nursery School, Kerem Primary School, Moss Hall Nursery, Brooklands Junior School and Henrietta Barnett School.
Also in attendance was the Mayor of Barnet, Councillor Tony Vourou, Councillor Alan Schneiderman and Dame Dawn Childs, CEO of Pure Data Centres.
The three plots, each housing around 600 trees in an area the size of a tennis court, will provide nature-rich spaces which connect to an existing Tiny Forest and urban wildflower meadow. They will provide a dense oasis for nature, with each one capable of attracting over 500 animal and plant species within the first three years. A natural pathway will lead visitors through the Tiny Forests to an outdoor classroom/seating area.
Cllr Alan Schneiderman, Cabinet member for Environment and Sustainability, said:
"By creating these Tiny Forests, we are not only enhancing local biodiversity but also providing valuable green spaces for our residents to enjoy.
“As a council that cares for its people, places and the planet this project exemplifies how we make that a reality by working together on projects like these with partners and residents.
“I am incredibly proud of the dedication shown by our volunteers and everyone who turned up today to help make Barnet a greener and more sustainable place to live."
The green sites will also serve as a living laboratory for local citizen scientists, coordinated by Earthwatch, to harvest data and investigate techniques to promote faster tree growth. Each plot will use a slightly different planting system to improve understanding of soil condition, carbon sequestrations and drainage.
Hannah Davidson, Senior Programme Manager at Earthwatch Europe, said:
"The planting of these new Tiny Forests provides an exciting opportunity to explore a variety of elements that can influence the health and growth of the trees. We look forward to monitoring these forests together with citizen scientists and share our findings.
The three new Tiny Forests will also add to the growing number of Nature in Cities solutions in North London, helping to create greener, healthier cities and improve access to nature-rich spaces for local communities."
The scheme has been part-funded by Pure Data Centres and its research subsidiary A Healthier Earth, which delivers sustainability projects. A Healthier Earth has supplied some of the saplings for the planting from its ForestFactory at Blenheim Palace.
Dame Dawn Childs, CEO of Pure DC, said:
“Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do at Pure DC. Through A Healthier Earth, we are pioneering innovative solutions to environmental challenges, and funding projects like the Tiny Forests is a natural extension of that work.
These Tiny Forests will provide immense ecological benefits, improving air quality, supporting urban biodiversity and creating greener, healthier spaces for our communities.
We are proud to be part of this transformative project and look forward to seeing its positive impact.”
The Tiny Forests are part of Earthwatch’s Nature in Cities programme which aims to create greener, healthier cities and improve access to nature-rich spaces in urban areas.
No chemicals or fertilisers were used in planting and Biochar, a modified charcoal that improves soil quality, and trees came from A Healthier Earth’s Forest Factory project.
The forests can create rich biodiversity and each forest is able to attract over 500 animal and plant species within the first three years.
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Notes to Editors
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Project and Purpose
Earthwatch Europe is collaborating with the London Borough of Barnet and A Healthier Earth to plant three Tiny Forests on an area of underutilised amenity greenspace, Mutton Brook, in March 2025. The aim is to understand the effect of soil preparation and tree growth strategy on ecosystem service provision.
Using citizen scientists, coordinated by Earthwatch, data on tree growth, soil condition and impacts on environmental markers such as thermal comfort, carbon sequestration, improved drainage and biodiversity will be collected and analysed by the parties over two years.
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About the Mutton Brook Site
The Mutton Brook area already has a Tiny Forest and a wildflower meadow; the design of the space will link the existing spaces with the three new Tiny Forests. A natural pathway will lead visitors through the Tiny Forests to the outdoor classroom/seating area located by the original Tiny Forest and new wildflower meadow.
About Earthwatch Europe
Earthwatch Europe is an environmental charity that helps people take action to protect the natural world around them. We connect people with nature and give them the tools they need to fight for our planet. We support communities and organisations to build knowledge, create connections and motivate action.
Find out more on our website: www.earthwatch.org.uk
About Nature in Cities by Earthwatch
Earthwatch’s Nature in Cities programmes help to create greener, healthier cities and improve access to nature-rich spaces. We deliver community-led urban nature-based solutions and activities to empower people of all ages and from all walks of life to connect with nature and take action for our planet, using citizen science as an engagement tool.
Find out more on our website: www.earthwatch.org.uk/natureincities
About Pure Data Centres
Pure DC designs, builds and operates sustainable data centres for some of the world’s largest technology companies which meet today’s digital demands while safeguarding all our tomorrows.
We currently have over 500MW of IT capacity live or under development across the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, including London, Dublin, Abu Dhabi and Jakarta sites.
We believe that data centres are an essential service which can be a force for good, creating employment opportunities, supporting local communities and investing in environmental restoration.