West Parley village is going greener – by planting more trees around its streets.
Local garden centre Golden Acres contributed by donating five trees and more have been given by residents in memory of loved ones – in all 16 new young trees are growing around the village.
Member of the parish council and volunteer co-ordinator Alan MacDonald said: “We are keen on the benefits of more trees and consultation with the residents confirmed what we felt.
“It’s not just our visible areas along roads, we also own and are currently revitalising Parley Wood with a large team of volunteer residents.”
In fact, the parish council boasts a whopping 120 volunteers from among its 3,600 residents – and they regularly clear litter from the roads, maintain flower displays, distribute leaflets, and clear hedges and pavements.
West Parley Parish Council is a new council that came in on a landslide election in May 2011.
Chairman Richard Heaslip said: “This village is actually one of the oldest in the area, but now its survival depends on establishing its identity, or it could just be seen as part of Ferndown and Bournemouth.
“We’re in the Doomsday Book, we have a Saxon Church and Iron Age hill fort – it’s a lovely rural area but you don’t see much of it just driving through. So increased numbers of trees are helping create the identity we want.”
Picture by Phil Dowding
