Photo Credit: Shelley Cockayne
The Sheffield Tree Action Group (STAG) is being recognised with a plaque at Sheffield Town Hall. The plaque will commemorate its drive towards saving trees from being felled and advocating for the protection of Sheffield’s nature.
Shelley Cockayne, current member of STAG, said: “It feels as though the war on Sheffield trees has come to an end.
“The plaque is so important to us. One because it is giving us the vindication that we so desperately deserve, and two because it signifies the council finally recognising our efforts, and admitting they were wrong.”
The new plaque will be unveiled at Sheffield Town Hall on Friday 6 March at 12:30pm.
STAG says it is ‘overjoyed’ with the plaque for ‘recognising the courageous, history making efforts of those involved in Sheffield’s street tree campaign during 2012 to 2018’.
STAG was formed in 2020 to continue campaigning work that followed protests against tree-felling by Sheffield City Council.
It says its aim is to ‘protect and support the development of urban trees and urban green spaces’.
Recently, STAG was granted nearly £8000 in legal funds and says it plans to use the grant to pay for more street trees in low canopy and high deprivation areas.
Ms Cockayne said: “The trees are so vital to Sheffield, so naturally so is the group.
“We want to make Sheffield a better and more healthy place.”
The Sheffield tree felling protests were a series of unrest happening between 2012 and 2018 in Sheffield.
The protests began as a response to the mass felling of street trees across Sheffield as part of the ‘Streets Ahead’ Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contract signed by Sheffield City Council.
The group’s goal was to stop the ‘unnecessary felling’ of ‘health’ street trees.
Tree felling has paused since 2018 due to a new Council approach for the maintenance of street trees.
The Sheffield Street 2021 Tree Partnership Strategy was signed by representatives of Sheffield City Council and anti-felling campaigners for ensuring the continued preservation of the street trees around the city.