Tree planting and yellow rattle seeding at Westmorland General Hospital to increase the biodiversity of the grounds and to connect staff with the nature around the hospital to improve the staff and service users health and wellbeing.

Westmorland General Hospital is the Trusts headquarters and it provides a range of ‘general hospital’ services including elective operations, outpatient appointments and mid-wifery led maternity services together with an urgent Treatment Centre. There is also a mental health in-patient unit on site run by Lancashire and South Cumbria Foundation Trust.

In this phase of the project we again worked with David Sanderson the Director of Estates and Facilities and the wider estates team. Following our event in July the hospital ordered 250 trees through the NHS forest (who inspire and support healthcare sites to transform their green space for health, wellbeing and biodiversity)

Natural England Health and Environment Higher Officers worked with the hospital to arrange a tree planting day. 10 Natural England staff, 10 members of the Well Communities (an addict rehabilitation project) and a number of NHS staff from the hospital helped to plant the trees across the site. They also sowed yellow rattle within the grassland where the wildflower plants were planted last year.

The tree species planted included hawthorn, blackthorn, rowan, bird cherry, hazel and crab apple. Nearly all these species provide flowers early in the season which are important for insects, they also produce fruit which can be used by birds through the winter. These species will therefore help to increase the biodiversity of the site.

The hope is that we carry on this project with another event in the summer around wildflowers and insects. We are also in discussions with the hospital charity about other works around the site and the possibility of purchasing bird box cameras which could provide footage for the wards within the hospital – looking at how we can maybe do some of the activities with the younger patients to help with their recovery.

Also thinking about how the bird boxes could be built and sold as part of the hospital charities fund raising for nature projects.

Project Partners

NHS Forest, UHMB NHS Trust, Natural England, Arnside and Silverdale National Landscape and People Plant Trees CIC

How did Natural England Support the Project?

This project followed on from the previous project day in July 2024 when the staff built bird/bat boxes and planted wildflower plug plants.

We supported the project, by organising the day – sorting out the trees into suitable species bundles for the various planting areas. We organised the timing of the day, the equipment loans and the volunteers. Natural England also helped with the promotion of the project.

We also ran the day making sure all the volunteers knew what they were doing, how to plant the trees well.

We also supplied the wildflower seed and gave guidance on how to sow the seed.

Project Outcomes/Lessons learned

This event further supported the relationship between the NHS staff and Natural England and we are planning further events in the spring/autumn 2025.

The project has now opened lines of communication with the hospital charity to continue the work on this site and hopefully future hospital sites. The project has also led to a relationship building between Active Cumbria and Natural England around increasing activity for service users and staff at the hospital.

Impact

The biodiversity of the site has again been increased.

The staff are a lot more connected with the nature on the site and have more ownership of the grounds as they planted the trees

Visitors to the hospital and service users will be able to connect with the increased nature in the future through work with the hospital charity and Active Cumbria.

The trees will also help to reduce the Carbon Footprint of the Trust, they will help improve the air quality and reduce the noise from the main road which runs along one side of the hospital. The trees will also help to reduce the heat island effect of this built up area.