Salts Wood plants 22,000 trees in Boughton Monchelsea
Salts Wood in Boughton Monchelsea is a newly planted 33-acre community woodland with 22,000 native trees. In a UK government case study, Andy Humphryes, vice chair of the parish council, explains how the site has been set up for everyday use, with hard paths that loop around the woods so prams, wheelchairs and walkers can all get in.
From a learning point of view, this is the kind of place where you can watch a landscape change as a young woodland establishes. In the early years the canopy stays open, light reaches the ground, and wildflowers and grasses move in. As the trees mature, shade builds and the plant mix shifts, giving you a living timeline of succession to observe with a class or on your own walk.
For biodiversity, native trees quietly do the heavy lifting. They feed local food webs, offer nesting and roosting spots, and host the insects birds rely on. Planting at this scale creates more connected habitat, and because the paths are circular, you can map edges, cores and corridors as simple fieldwork on a phone or notebook.
Trees also help with climate and water. They store carbon, slow surface run-off after heavy rain and filter air. If your students ask how much difference one site can make, invite them to think in two time frames: the immediate benefits of shade, shelter and flood buffering, and the long-term gains as 22,000 trees grow and lock away more carbon year by year.
Access matters. Hard paths mean more neighbours can share the space, including wheelchair users and families with buggies. That design choice turns a planting project into a public resource. For wellbeing lessons, you can explore how regular time in green spaces lowers stress and how shared places strengthen a sense of belonging.
Salts Wood is also a civic story. A parish council helped champion it, which reminds us that local decision-making can create real places, not just paperwork. With a group, you might list the roles visible here-parish councillors, volunteers, contractors and residents-and trace how their decisions show up in the woodland you’re walking through.
When you read a case study like the one published by the UK government, keep three questions in your pocket. Who is speaking and on whose behalf? What numbers are given and what is missing? What happens next and who is responsible for ongoing care? Those checks keep us curious and fair-minded.
This site doubles as an outdoor classroom. You could run a mini bioblitz along the path edges, compare soil moisture on and off the trail, or sketch how wayfinding helps people feel welcome. Back in the classroom, use the 22,000 figure to practise sampling: count seedlings in a one‑metre square and scale up to estimate survival across 33 acres.
If this inspires you to act locally, start by walking your nearest green space and noting access points, habitat links and any barriers. Share what you find with your council or school eco‑group. Salts Wood shows that when everyday design-good paths, native trees, open access-meets community energy, we get places that are kinder to wildlife and fairer for people.