Our commitment to diversity and inclusion

At the Woodland Trust, we believe everyone deserves to have their lives enriched by woods and trees.

We believe everyone deserves equal protection from climate change. Equal air, water and soil quality. Equal opportunity to feel the positive impact of trees and woods on our minds, bodies and spirits. But currently, this is not the case. Who we are and where we live determines how much we access, enjoy and benefit from woods and trees.

We also believe our own organisation should reflect and represent all voices within our communities. But again, this is not currently the case. The environmental sector is one of the least ethnically diverse in the UK and we are no different.

We know that we have work to do to improve our organisation’s diversity and inclusion. Just as it takes time and effort to create, restore and protect woods, it takes time to grow an inclusive culture in which diversity can thrive. We are firmly committed to real systemic change.

What have we done so far?

• We've designed a diversity and inclusion action plan which outlines the steps we'll take to improve under-representation and support an inclusive and welcoming workplace for our staff and volunteers.
• We've participated in the RACE Report 2024, publishing data about our racial diversity to improve transparency and be held accountable for our commitment and progress.
• We regularly collaborate across the environmental sector on meaningful, action-focused initiatives.

Our priorities for 2025

• Develop a race equity action plan and focus on removing barriers for people of colour during our recruitment, development and progression processes. We're also committed to participating in the RACE Report 2025.
• Continue to reform our employee recruitment, reviewing the impact of anonymised recruitment (where personal information is obscured from recruiting managers) and exploring positive actions (measures to overcome our historical imbalances).
• Support the development of our existing staff networks to ensure there are thriving communities of peer support within our organisation.
• Continue to work with partners and other organisations on actions which can drive systemic change in the sector.
• Work alongside local communities to address disparities in tree cover in urban environments, addressing the inequitable access to woods and trees for marginalised communities.