The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC)

 Her Majesty The Queen and His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales will mark the start of the official planting season for The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) at the Balmoral Estate on Friday, 1st October 2021.
The QGC is a unique tree planting initiative created to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee
in 2022 which invites people across the United Kingdom to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee”.
Her Majesty and His Royal Highness, who is Patron of the QGC, will plant a copper beech
tree at the Balmoral Estate’s historic cricket pavilion, joined by schoolchildren from nearby
Crathie Primary School.
The event marks the unveiling of the QGC’s education programme which seeks to inspire
young people as the future custodians of the UK’s green spaces, forests and woodlands.
With its partners, the QGC has created a programme to encourage schools to participate in
tree planting to support the environment and celebrate Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee.
Working with the Royal Forestry Society, and the Scottish Forestry Society, a special national
edition of the Junior Forester Award has been created for the Jubilee year, which will be
made available to schools nationwide. The children from Crathie Primary School will be the
first participants in the QGC Junior Forester Award, which aims to inspire knowledge of the
benefit of trees and equip young people with the practical ability to assist in woodland management
in their schools and local communities.
From 4th October, QGC Celebration Trees will be gifted to selected primary schools in areas
of socio-economic deprivation in 69 cities across the UK. Together with the Crathie Primary
School, 70 QGC Celebration Trees will be gifted, with plantings to be led across the country
by Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenants. This initiative will highlight the educational aspects
of trees and the significance of giving young people access to nature, encouraging wider engagement with the QGC across the school curriculum.
In addition, the QGC is encouraging all schools to get involved in planting Jubilee trees, with
free tree packs available through our partners the Woodland Trust and The Conservation
Volunteers.
The QGC will also work with the UK-wide education charity EDT and Industrial Cadets.
From 1st October all Jubilee trees can to be added to the QGC Map, which will create a digital record of the green canopy of tree planting projects across the country.
https://queensgreencanopy.org/map-education-hub/qgc-map/#/
Since the launch of the QGC in May, people across the country have been busy planning
their projects, ready for planting in the Autumn. Jubilee tree planting projects have been planned in all counties in the United Kingdom.
In coming months, the QGC will unveil further details of activities including:
• A green skilling initiative, working in collaboration with Cavendish Group and Capel
Manor College to create a pilot training programme for young unemployed people
with a keen interest in horticulture.
• An urban community planting programme working with our Partner Trees for Cities
which focusses on the social and environmental impact of tree planting, prioritising
projects in places with socio-economic deprivation and low canopy cover.
• A “Champion Cities” initiative to highlight the leadership, dynamism and influence
of some of the nation’s outstanding cities which have trees and woodland as a
central part of their plans for green spaces.
As well as inviting the planting of new trees, the QGC will create a network of 70 Ancient
Woodlands across the UK and identify 70 Ancient Trees to celebrate Her Majesty’s 70 years of service. The QGC has convened a group of forestry experts from across the country to determine which woodlands and trees will become part of the QGC.
The QGC encourages everyone to plant trees as a simple, natural solution to climate change,
cleaner air, habitat for wildlife and enhancement to health and wellbeing.