A CHARITY that offers palliative care is branching out … by offering to collect your Christmas tree.
Sue Ryder, which operates the Duchess of Kent House Hospice in Tilehurst, is asking people to sign up to the scheme before the bells ring on New Year’s Eve.
It comes following research that suggests out of all South East residents putting up a Christmas tree, just over half (54%) will have an artificial tree, while 46% are opting for a real tree – more than any other region in the UK.
More than half (58%) plan on recycling their real Christmas tree too with 2 in 10 (23%) planning giving back by using a local charity scheme, like that offered by Sue Ryder.
And people in the south east are more likely to use a local charity scheme to recycle their real Christmas trees than any other region than Yorkshire and The Humber (59%).
The charity’s green tree scheme is available to residents of certain postcodes Thames Valley – OX10, RG1, RG2, RG4, RG5, RG6, RG7, RG8, RG9, RG30 and RG31.
For a suggested donation, Sue Ryder’s Christmas Treecycling scheme will see the charity collect your tree from your front door, front garden or driveway and turn it into compost or wood chippings for use in a variety of uses to help reduce landfill waste. Funds raised will help Sue Ryder continue to provide expert and compassionate care to people with life-limiting conditions as well as supporting their families.
Funds raised will help its work supporting families in the region needing palliative care and bereavement support. Last year Sue Ryder provided palliative care to thousands of families across the country, including from its Sue Ryder Duchess of Kent Hospice in the region.
Sue Ryder’s bereavement support includes an online community forum, free bereavement counselling service, personalised text support and new Grief Kind Spaces in Thatcham and Reading and other parts of the country.
Rachael Cleary, Senior Sustainability Officer at Sue Ryder said: “It’s brilliant to see this new data highlighting South East England as a ‘hotspot’ for using charity tree recycling schemes. In the midst of a cost-of-living crisis, it’s not surprising that the people of the South East are also finding savvy ways to cut costs this Christmas and be kinder to the environment in the process – including bargain hunting for festive decorations in charity shops – so remember to check out your local Sue Ryder shop.
“Recycling your Christmas tree or choosing sustainable ways to decorate your real firs are such simple and effective means of reducing your carbon footprint and giving back to nature. So, give a little extra ‘green’ gift this Christmas while supporting a fantastic cause.”
And Fern Haynes Head of Community Fundraising for Sue Ryder in the Thames Valley said: “The Sue Ryder Treecycling Scheme operating across Thames Valley is run entirely by volunteer-power, and we’d like to say a ‘tree’mednous thank you to them for all their support, which helps us raise such vital funds for families needing our care.
“As much as we wish we could be there collecting trees right across the UK we don’t have Santa Claus’s magical powers to be everywhere, which is why we cover selected postcodes only. If you or your friends or family live in a postcode area where Sue Ryder is treecycling, please do book your tree in with us. If not, you can still be sustainable and support many other local charities who might be operating schemes in your postcode.
“Please look up your local scheme – we know just how much charities like ours need everyone’s support right now.”
For more details, or to book, log on to: www.sueryder.org/thamestreecycling
