 Final few days to claim a free tree
There’s only a few days left to claim up to 10 free trees to plant on your land or in your garden. Applications for our Garden Forest Scheme close on Sunday (13 February).
Following a successful pilot round, which saw 800 people collect a sapling at the start of the planting season last month, we’re inviting applications for the second phase of of the scheme, kindly funded by the Woodland Trust.
We’re offering hazel, crab apple, rowan, silver birch and field maple and we’ll try to accommodate your preferences where we can. To find out more, fill out the form on our Engage platform – you’ll need to register but it’s quick and free of charge.
 Ukraine host goes to Number 10
One of our Ukraine support worker and hosts was invited by the Prime Minister to Number 10 Downing Street for a celebration and thank you event, hosted by The Rt Hn Michael Gove.
Stuart said of his day at Number 10: “I went with my wife Joanne and guests Sasha and Lyudmila. We were taken up the staircase with all the photos of previous prime ministers to the function room. We were introduced to Michael Gove, who spent some time talking with us.
“He was interested in how the hosting system was working and especially wanted to know what could be improved.
“There was a violinist playing Ukrainian music and about 170 hosts and guests including children. We were then treated to a children’s choir from a Ukrainian primary school, then Michael Gove welcomed the Ukrainian guests, thanked the hosts, and reaffirmed the UK Government’s commitment to supporting Ukraine.
“Sasha said it was a very special moment in his life and he will always remember how the UK supported Ukraine and was so welcoming to Ukrainian refugees.”
 Make your planet pledge
We’ve launched our Planet Pledge campaign to inspire and encourage people to make changes to help address the climate emergency.
A Planet Pledge is a solemn promise an individual chooses and sticks to over the course of the year to tackle the climate emergency.
More than three years ago, we declared a climate emergency which commits us to playing as full a role as possible in reducing our carbon footprint to be carbon neutral by 2030.
We need your help and we are asking people who live, work, study and provide services in Wokingham Borough to make and share least one pledge.
You could pledge to use active travel as your main transport, install renewable energy sources such as solar panels, shop locally or cut down on single use plastic ending up in landfill. Together, we can all make a difference and help our planet.
 Could you offer a safe, loving home?
We're looking for families and individuals to foster unaccompanied and asylum-seeking children who may feel threatened in their home country and fear for their lives due to war, oppression or civil unrest.
Children often flee these places alone, arriving with no knowledge of English culture or customs and unable to speak the language - but you could give them a new start with all the love and support they need to thrive.
Wendy, who fosters for us, recently took on 15-year-old Hassan (not his real name) from Iran. She helped him find others who spoke Kurdish locally and he quickly settled at home, at college and in the community as his English improved.
Foster carers get specialist training, one-to-one and out of hours support, access to support groups and activities, council tax exemption, an allowance from £140 a week per child and additional allowances for living costs and special occasions.
Please visit our Fostering website or send us an email to find out more.
Still here for cost of living help
We know many residents continue to struggle financially due to rising energy costs. Thousands of local people are choosing between cooking a family meal or heating their home. Here’s some things which could help:
How to help the community
You can share the support onwards with your family, friends or neighbours, especially if they’re older and not likely to use digital services.
Or if you’re not struggling you can help others by donating to the Surviving Winter crowdfund.
If you give £50, it’s like giving £150 as we and Wokingham United Charities will be match funding all donations.
Everything will go directly to charities who provide food and other essentials, as well as supporting projects for people who are struggling the most.
What you might have missed
Here’s all our updates sent in the last week, just in case you’ve missed anything:
You can sign up for updates on our website.
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