Climate action: Water your street trees

Rising temperatures and dry spells are leading to an increasing loss of new street trees. The Arboricultural Association is joining forces with the Woodland Trust and local authority tree officer associations to rally the UK public to water their new street trees using recycled rainwater or grey water, such as washing up water.

Catherine Nuttgens, head of the Woodland Trust’s urban tree programme, explained: “Trees are crucial to our well being by cooling our towns and cities and improving air quality so we need to not only plant more but look after those we already have. While in rural settings newly planted saplings and woods can take care of themselves and adapt, the challenging conditions presented by living in the built environment means trees in our streets and urban areas need a bit more TLC. It’s a fun job to do with the kids or make it a post tea time routine to water the trees . It can rally community spirit too if estates or streets club together.”

John Parker, chief executive of the Arboricultural Association said:

“Planting a tree is just the start of the story. The health and survival of new urban trees is threatened by increasingly dry weather. It is recommended that newly planted trees are given 50 litres of water per week during the summer months, for the first three years. You can help ensure healthy trees for the future over the summer months by watering trees near you.”

Watering should ideally be carried out in the early morning or evening. Where possible, water should be sustainably sourced. Harvested rainwater; bath water; or washing up water. Not water containing bleach or strong detergent or after cleaning floors.

Ian Phipps MCFHP MAFHP

Foot Health Practitioner

(Wendover - based) visits - 01296 623851

On 24 June 2023, with little ceremony, Wendover Community News Community Interest Company (CIC) became an official, legally registered company. It’s an important development for Wendover News. In the coming weeks and months, the ownership of the Wendover News title will be transferred to the new company and will be run by and for, the community of Wendover and the surrounding areas.

Unlike ordinary limited companies, there will be no ‘owners’ in the traditional sense. Nobody will be pushing for greater profits, and there’s no risk of being controlled, or sold off to big media companies.

The management and governance of the company is in the hands of five capable volunteer trustees who are known and trusted by the community: Paul Hammett, James Harrington, Rory Lavery, Huw Price and Holly Tallarico. They are additionally aided by specialists Simon Eccles, Jane

Larkham (as a volunteer), Richard Byford and Wynne who runs the virtual office.

As a community interest company, Wendover News will have strict controls on political coverage and will be regulated as a media organisation by IMPRESS, the independent monitor for the press. These controls extend both to the print edition and all online activities. Far from being constraints, they will enable Wendover Community News focus on being a trusted and reliable provider of news and opinion in the communities it serves.

The company is in the final stages of drafting its own editorial policy, with supporting checklists, procedures and training material for its volunteer and community journalists. The editorial policy will be publicly available on the website, along with other policies.

To be accepted by the Regulator of CICs as a suitable company for registration, Wendover

Community News had to submit a ‘purpose statement’ as part of its constitution. In addition to sustaining the current activities of the limited company, it contains sections on sustaining and developing a wider team of volunteers, providing a trusted local media service, maintaining a strict ethical editorial policy, and promoting local charities, social enterprises, and community groups.

Although in the medium term, the new company will be applying for grants and philanthropic funding, in the short term, it will rely on income from advertising. If you are a local trader, business or start-up that wants to access thousands of people in Wendover and the surrounding villages (and much wider, via online links), then now is the time to invest in an advert in Wendover News. You will be able to look back in another 32 years and be proud that you helped the community get its own media channel started.

We’re looking to expand our pool of writers and contributors. You don’t have to commit to being a volunteer. You might just want to write something which will appeal to most of our readers. It could be news, an article, or an expert piece on something relevant to the community. To be included, it needs to have specific relevance and interest to people living in Wendover and surrounding areas. That includes Wendover, Dunsmore, The Lee, Halton, Weston Turville and Aston Clinton. However, we can be flexible enough to address the needs of people further away who may be influenced by our content –such as travel and commuting details, places to visit within a few miles of Wendover or developments that affect the area generally. We are keen to involve lots of people in writing for us, but we must be selective about what we print. This means we could sometimes be at risk of disappointing individuals who have dedicated time to writing something that might never be published. It’s a good idea to run your ideas past one of Wendover News’s editorial team who can advise you on the likelihood of publication and even offer help with writing style and structure. You don’t necessarily need any previous experience or qualifications in writing to get yourself into print!

Printing the monthly newspaper costs us