Planting with purpose

Published on
23 November 2022

For one day a year, every colleague at The Cumberland gets the opportunity to take a day out of work to volunteer for a charity of their choosing. Members of our Commercial and Risk teams volunteered with Cumbria Wildlife Trust.

On day one the team were at Eycott Hill, a 210-hectare nature reserve located near Penrith. After the local vegetation had been largely destroyed over the years, the team battled the elements to help regenerate the surroundings, planting 150 Hawthorne and approximately 400 Willow trees!

Our green-fingered colleagues were also at Gosling Sike nature reserve in Houghton on the outskirts of Carlisle to support the Trust. They spent the day planting seedlings, preparing the ground for seed sowing, and tidying paths. The team got to hear from the Wildlife Trust about the huge efforts going into saving almost extinct plant species across the country, and how planting particular species can help to attract wildlife back into the area.

Hear from Ian Craig, Senior Commercial Support Manager, as he tells us more about the volunteering days.