Growing a greener future in Holyrood

Residents from the Holyrood estate joined Cabinet Member for Green City and Environment, Councillor Steve Leggett, to plant an English oak tree in their neighbourhood that was donated by CitizEn Energy, the green energy provider run by the council.

The tree is just one of 100 new saplings that CitizEn Energy is giving away to local schools and community groups as part of its campaign to ‘green Southampton’ by helping to improve the environment and attract more wildlife to inner city areas. Over 60 trees have already been distributed around the city to create greener neighbourhoods for present and future generations. If you’re interested in receiving a free sapling for your community, please email CitizEn Energy.

To find out how CitizEn Energy can save you money on your energy bills and how easy it is to switch, visit the website or drop in to Southampton Gateway on 16, 17, 19 or 20 March between 9:30 and 10:30am to chat to members of their team.

Planting new trees is just one of the ways we are working towards making Southampton a cleaner, greener, healthier and more sustainable city. Last year we launched our Green City Charter which sets out our ambitious goals including being carbon neutral by 2030 and using energy generated from renewable sources.

There are lots of ways that you can play your part in helping to make our city greener. Why not join a local community gardening club? As well as helping to brighten up your local area, community gardening is a great way to meet new people and can improve your physical fitness and mental wellbeing too. Get in touch to find out where your local gardening club is.

We run weekly gardening workshops in Millbrook, Holyrood and Weston as part of the Plants For People project run in partnership with Solent Mind's Mayfield Nurseries (who provided the oak tree saplings for the CitizEn Energy scheme). To find out more email the Plants For People team or call them on 023 8044 7743.