January 2021 Newsletter ✨

Dear readers,
Happy new year! This month, we're calling for artists far and wide to take part in our Anonymous A5 Art Show! To raise funds for the cabin build. We would also like to update you on the winter planting and volunteering situation, and draw your attention to two important upcoming dates - another quiz night and a community consultation update! Scroll down to read more :)
Best wishes, the ATU team. x

Tree planting over the winter months

We still have around 600 trees to get in the ground, including several hundred meters of a new hedgerow.

Even though we are confident that we can manage workdays to keep everyone safe, there are clearly more risks associated with the new Covid variant, something which increases the pressure on the set-up team and adds significantly to anxiety levels.

Although we would love to start up again this month, we have made a decision to postpone wider community involvement in planting and group working till mid-February, in line with the government's review date, at which point we will take stock of the situation.

The remaining trees must be in the ground by mid-March. Even if Covid transmission rates remain high, we plan to resume planting by the end of February at the latest. We, therefore, may need to work over more days with smaller numbers of volunteers but,
with your help, we will reach our 1000 tree target.

How can you help?

Volunteer to plant trees – email volunteers@andovertrees.org.uk if you haven’t already to let us know when you are free (Monday, other/ any weekday, weekend)
If you have experience of tree planting and would be happy to work solo before group work days resume, please let us know
If you have a child/ children attending a local school and would like to involve them and help with planting for a specific school, please let us know

We look forward to working with you! :)

Tree Planting Fortnight 2020 news article

Another Quiz Night!

After the success of last November's virtual quiz, we're delighted to be hosting another!

This will, again, help to raise funds for the new woodland classroom in Harmony Woods, and as with the previous quiz, tickets will be £5 per person and under-16s FREE.

Saturday 6th February - 7:15pm

Teams of 6. You will be able to join a team, or bring your own!

The zoom link supplied when booking.

To buy a ticket and donate to the cabin build, please email: volunteers@andovertrees.org.uk

Hope to see you there!

For Sale: Willow Bird Feeders

Following the success of our craft stall on Andover high street last month and the popularity of our willow products, we are continuing to make the willow bird feeders.

To place an order and to purchase, please email us at volunteers@andovertrees.org.uk

Save the date!
Saturday 30th January 10am - 12pm

Tune in to our community consultation progress update to find out how all the ideas and suggestions made during the three workshops, held last June/ July, have been taken forward.

6 groups have been working since August last year to produce a vision statement, draft actions and associated outcomes and outputs in each of the following areas, identified as fundamental to the work of ATU:

Nature and sustainability
The ATU brand
Community connections
Education
Creativity and wellbeing
Scaling up and influencing

You are invited to join the review workshop on 30th January to comment on the work so far. The outcome of all consultations will form the next 10-year plan for Andover Trees United. A meeting you don't want to miss!

Please email us if you would like to be sent the meeting link. It doesn't matter if you were unable to attend the consultation sessions back in the summer, all contributions are valued and everyone is welcome :)

Fundraising for the Woodland Classroom

We are very excited to say that spring and summer 2021 will finally see the construction of the new woodland classroom and community space in Harmony Woods!
The construction will involve the Carpenter's Fellowship, we are honoured to have been selected as their 2021 charitable project. This means the cabin frame will be crafted from tree trunks (by hand!) and raised (by hand!) by this team of very skilled crafters and carpenters - and we, the local community, will be able to get involved with the process.

However, we still need to raise the remainder of the funds to complete the build.
Here are the ways in which you can help us achieve this goal:

Purchase some of the wonderful green craft products that our volunteer team have been busy creating over the past few months. Including willow bird feeders, personalised wooden discs and willow wreaths. We are happy to arrange collection points for you to pick up your products. Please email eve.johnson@andovertrees.org.uk to make a purchase.
Select ATU as your charitable organisation on Amazon Smile - and donate to ATU every time you shop through smile.amazon.co.uk.
Make a cash donation via Global Giving. Donations can be enhanced by Gift Aid.
Attend our upcoming quiz night on February 6th and 7:15pm!

Funds raised will go towards the building of an eco-friendly woodland classroom and community space so that we can offer more opportunities to you, our community. Outdoor learning, community workshops, volunteering. Help us scale up, branch out, offer more and make a bigger, positive difference.

THANK YOU for your support.

Donate to 'the cabin' project via Global Giving

Community Art Club

December and January's theme is 'Winter Woodland!'

Send in your winter woodland themed creations to eve.johnson@andovertrees.org.uk to be showcased on our website, entered into the prize draw and to be in with a chance of being featured on our new Harmony Woods signs!

Read the journals to follow the progress of the artists and crafters who are working with the timber from the One Ash.

Co-op Community Fund

We have a new environmental arts-based project called ‘Voices Unveiled’, an element of which, 'Andover's Ash' will be supported by the 2020/21 Co-op Community Fund.

How the Fund Works

Co-op Members can select to support our project between now and 23 October 2021.

You can join the Co-op membership online at coop.co.uk/membership or by downloading the Co-op app. Where you will be asked to select your local cause.

Thank you!

About the Andover's Ash project

'Andover’s Ash’ builds on ‘One Ash’ and ‘Ash Tree Stream’ and will connect the Andover community to the Ash trees and chalk streams from which the town takes its name.

Timber from One Ash will be used by many; stories and accounts of contact with local Ash Trees will be mapped, documented and shared; locally collected songs and folklore will tell tales of living by the stream, further referencing the origins of the town’s name

Contributing to Voices Unveiled, which culminates in a festival in 2022, we will celebrate the final tree planting of, and all work created during, the 10-year ‘Harmony Woods’ project. Every aspect of creativity will be documented and shared in exhibitions and performances in the town.

Thank you for your support.

Covid-19

In order to adhere to the government’s guidelines, we would like to make you aware that:

Volunteer workdays; our monthly Saturday and weekly Monday workdays will be postponed to wider community involvement in planting and group working till mid-February, in line with the government's review date, at which point we will take stock of the situation.
- Those of you that may walk through Harmony Woods as your daily exercise are welcome to carry out an individual task if you wish to. If you are interested in this idea, please contact us for more information.
- We also ask for help in monitoring the site’s condition. If you notice anything untoward in Harmony Woods, we would really appreciate it if you could let us know. Thank you.
Learning resources - there are additional resources online for those of you that would like to do some activities at home and outdoors. Keep checking as we plan to update this section with winter resources in the next few weeks.

We are still working behind the scenes on strategic planning, writing funding bids, project prep and all sorts of admin tasks. If you would like to volunteer in any of these areas we would love to hear from you - please get in touch. We can still be reached via our website and online via our social media pages.

We hope you all stay safe and we look forward to seeing you all again soon. x