Woodlands for Water
The Woodlands for Water project ran from October 2021 – March 2025. It was the first project developed by the Riverscapes partnership, which, with support from Defra, aimed to create 1,600 hectares of trees in six river catchment areas from Devon to Cumbria.
Please note: The Woodlands for Water ended in March 2025. The project was delivered through the Nature for Climate funding from Defra. If you would like to learn more about woodland creation opportunities, please visit the Put Down Roots campaign.
Funded through DEFRA, the Woodlands for Water project was carried out by the ‘Riverscapes Partnership' which includes experts from The Rivers Trust, National Trust, Woodland Trust and Beaver Trust. Working across 6 river catchments and the whole National Trust English estate, the partnership provided expert advice and assistance on creating new riparian and strategic catchment woodlands that benefit the wider landscape.
As a partnership, we have the ambition to restore 25,000km of rivers and streams across the UK by creating a network of riparian wildlife corridors and buffer strips by 2030. Riparian woodlands have multiple benefits that boost biodiversity, keep our rivers cool and help to reduce harmful runoff from roads and agricultural land.
Project end final figures
At the end of Woodlands for Water in March 2025, the total hectares of trees planted through the project came to 288.25ha across all pathfinder regions. Approximately 998,974 trees were planted across 73 new woodland sites.
Planted sites across the Woodlands for Water river catchments
(Please right click and 'open image in new tab' to read each case study in full).
Learn more
Take a look at our Tree Hub which takes you through the vision and locations of the project.