A lasting legacy
Full Circle Funerals have a long history of planting a tree for every individual that we support, and we can now offer a wider variety of options so that you can choose where you would like us to make our donation to. We do this because it helps us have a positive impact on our beautiful planet – and it is part of the legacy of an important life.
We are delighted that we can now continue our work with Make It Wild by paying for a tree to be planted at Dowgill Grange Forest but have now also partnered with Yorkshire Dales Millenium Trust (YDMT) to be able to support their wildflower meadow creation, wellbeing walks, trees in YDMT woodlands and their Youth Climate Action Fund.
If we have supported you to arrange a funeral:
For us to make the donation to the work that you value the most, please email us with your preference, or complete and return the postcard that you will have been sent by the funeral director who supported you. Please note this does not currently apply to Full Circle Funerals Partners.
Restoring wildflower habitats and supporting pollinators (YDMT)
Your Full Circle Funerals donation could help restore 35 square metres of species rich wildflower meadow and support YDMT’s ongoing work to restore meadows and engage communities in the Forest of Bowland and Yorkshire Dales.
Traditionally managed, wildflower-rich hay meadows are a high priority habitat in the UK and an iconic feature of the Yorkshire Dales and adjoining parts of upland Northern England. Visually stunning and teeming with pollinators and other wildlife, they are a living and vibrant link to the past, rich in folklore and tradition, and an important part of our rural and cultural heritage. They are wonderful places for people to learn about and reconnect with nature.
Sadly, over the last 70 years or so, some 97% of Britain’s wildflower meadows have disappeared, largely due to agricultural intensification. Species-rich meadows and the pollinators they support are facing an uncertain future but, since 2006, YDMT has led efforts to counter their decline, working with farmers and other partners, through restoration and better management of meadows, verges and other wildflower areas.
Restoring the wide range of wildflowers to a degraded meadow can take several years, but YDMT have set 750 hectares on the road to recovery. They have also provided literally thousands of people with the opportunity to discover, celebrate and enjoy the meadows and the wildlife that depend on them, and the rural heritage associated with them.
YDMT launched the nationally recognised Hay Time meadow restoration project in the Yorkshire Dales in 2006 and during that time they also helped set up similar projects in Nidderdale AONB and the Forest of Bowland AONB. They have also set up related projects like Bee Together, which helps local communities and businesses to create and manage wildflower patches, providing crucial stepping-stones for wildlife to move from place to place.
Woodland wellbeing for young people (YDMT)
Your Full Circle donation could cover one hour of a woodland wellbeing session for a vulnerable young person as part of a 12-week programme, providing them with long-term support to reduce anxiety and stress, build confidence and a sense of community.
It is estimated that three children in every classroom in the UK have a mental health condition. Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust recognises that there is a specific need for, and huge benefits to be gained from, longer term engagement. This is particularly true for young people experiencing disadvantage and those either struggling in mainstream education, at risk of being excluded or already having dropped out of the education system. These individuals have poorer life prospects accentuated by a lack of self-esteem and confidence, with incidences of anxiety and depression amongst young people reaching record levels.
Over the last year YDMT have delivered pilot Woodland Wellbeing projects with small groups of young people taking part in woodland-based activities. Sessions are designed to enhance wellbeing and support young people to develop a range of life skills. These sessions are largely young people led and responsive to the interests and needs of those taking part. Activities include: green woodworking, bushcraft, planting an orchard, creating a food garden and natural crafts. There was also time and space for more reflective practices such as mindfulness, swinging in hammocks, and fire lighting.
A recent participant said: “I look forward to Tuesday afternoons so much. I can be really stressed or anxious in the morning but I know when I get out here that I will feel calm. It’s hard to explain but I just feel free in my own skin. I really enjoy it and I’m really grateful for the chance to be out here.”
Tree planting for biodiversity and wellbeing in Nidderdale with Make it Wild
Make it Wild is a Yorkshire based family business, set up with one purpose – to help Nature. They manage land on seven (soon to be nine) sites solely for nature, through rewilding, reforestation and habitat creation.
MiW started planting trees as a family project, with a woodland of 20,000 young saplings planted in 2011. After a few years, they saw the way they brought nature back to a previously barren landscape – the young woodland was alive with insects, birds and mammals. This is what inspired them to continue, and to set up Make it Wild.
They have pledged to plant 100,000 trees this decade as part of the Northern Forest and will soon plant their 60,000th tree. As well as their amazing impact on biodiversity, trees stabilize soil, reduce flooding, clean the air and give us the very oxygen we breathe.
They are delighted to invite others to enjoy their young woodlands, sit in the wildflower meadows, gaze at wildlife ponds and explore ancient woodlands. They know how important connection to nature is for mental health and wellbeing, and are pleased to invite local people to deepen their connection with Nature through activities including Natural Mindfulness Walks, Foraging sessions, Nature-based coaching and Therapy. They also offer mindful rural craft sessions to local mental health charities.
Trees paid for through your Full Circle Funerals donation will be planted either in Dowgill Grange, Summerbridge, or Dacre Woodlands, Dacre. They help to continue growing the woodlands, to support biodiversity and wellbeing.
Together for Trees – creating and connecting native woodlands (YDMT)
With your Full Circle donation YDMT could dedicate one new native broadleaf tree in a YDMT supporter woodland, helping to tackle climate change and nature loss here in the Yorkshire Dales.
Planting trees is absolutely critical to help tackle climate change and nature loss. It’s even more important here in the Yorkshire Dales where woodland cover is just over 4% (the lowest of all our National Parks) – compared to the national average of about 9%. Diseases, poor management, and our increasing disconnection with nature, all place a significant threat on the valuable woodlands we have left.
Together for Trees is the YDMT campaign to create a landscape with more native broadleaf woodlands for people and wildlife. Smaller scale woodland creation is normally underfunded and overlooked, but has immense value for people, landscape and wildlife. These woodlands will absorb carbon, connect habitats, improve water quality and reduce flooding, as well as providing beautiful spaces for people to enjoy.
People are at the very heart of all YDMT woodland schemes. They support communities to create their own woodlands, provide training for young people to get jobs in the sector and opportunities for everyone to get involved in tree planting and other woodland activities. By bringing people together to plant the trees, YDMT help develop skills, improve well-being, and inspire people to care for them in future.
Youth Environmental Action Fund (YDMT)
A Full Circle donation towards YDMT’s Youth Environmental Action Fund could empower more young people to set up and deliver environmental projects that make a real difference in their local communities.
YDMT’s Youth Environmental Action Fund (YEAF) empowers and supports young people aged 11-24 to set up and deliver their own small scale environmental projects. Since its inception in 2017 the scheme has engaged more than 2,000 young people, supported 33 youth led projects and distributed a total £26,500 of grass roots funding.
The fund has supported a wide variety of inspiring projects including, 10 projects that help to increase biodiversity and enhance wildlife spaces, 5 recycling projects that save an estimated 162,769 kg of plastic waste going to landfill every year, art projects, an eco-festival, school eco club and sustainability group.
William, part of Bradleys Both Primary School’s YEAF funded ‘Wonderful Wildlife’ project, commented on his experience of creating wildlife habitats in his school grounds:
“This has been great. I really feel like I have done something worthwhile. I mean, I recycle at home and stuff but this, making actual new habitats for wildlife is amazing! I mean, wow! I really feel like I’m doing something to help the planet. And the best bit is that everyone else at school will get the benefit in the future”
If we have supported you to arrange a funeral then please let us know where you would like us to make a donation to. You can let us know by email, telephone or by completing the postcard that you should have received from your funeral director.
If we haven’t supported you but you would like to find out more about how to set up similar donation programs at your work, school or college then get in touch and we would be delighted to share everything that we have learnt.
If you would like to understand more about or commitment to have a positive social and environmental impact, you might enjoy reading about our journey to becoming a certified B Corp. To learn more about green and sustainable funerals, you can read our green funerals blog.
