How I was inspired to help make a difference: Chairman of Caprice Holdings and owner of the Ivy restaurants chain explains why he has donated £100,000 to tree-planting campaign

Pictured: Richard Caring and Patricia Caring arrive at The Fashion Awards 2019 held at Royal Albert Hall on December 2

Trees have always enchanted me. As a boy, I would often climb them and while away many an hour in their branches, although I probably spent more time falling out of them. But the bruises mattered little, because there is surely no better place to be than in a tree.

My five children fortunately share my delight, and the younger ones often come home proudly bearing leaves they have found.

But they are also very aware of the environmental crisis, which they learn about at school, and how the loss of trees worldwide is having such a devastating impact.

So when I read about the Mail’s plan to plant a thousand orchards in a thousand schools across Britain, I immediately decided to support it, to take this opportunity to make a real difference.

My company is giving a donation of £100,000 to fund this fantastic campaign. I hope that it will get people thinking about what all of us can do, and I hope that other businesses will follow suit.

I’m well aware that my own restaurant business, with kitchens across the country, leaves a carbon footprint. In short, we take from the environment. So this is an opportunity to give something back, to improve it.

It saddens me when I pass schools every day on my way to work that are surrounded by concrete, with not a tree in sight.

It would be wonderful if we could change this, and to make trees part of the everyday lives of more children. Sadly many schools are in areas with dangerous levels of pollution, but trees act as natural filters, reducing the impact of pollution.

Planting them in schools will not only improve the air children breathe, it will encourage children to think about the environment, and the challenges facing the planet.

It is a very practical way of teaching them about the importance of looking after nature. By watching the trees grow, and even helping look after them, they will learn to value them.

And the orchards will eventually produce fruit, which in turn will teach children how to grow food and show them that if you nurture nature, it will surely nurture you.

Recently I took my younger children to see the tree whose conkers I used to collect as a boy. There was not a conker in sight. It was quite a shock. Pollution and other factors had taken their toll.

This is why it is so necessary to be part of the Mail’s tree-planting campaign. In a few years’ time I hope to visit some of the schools where the orchards we have funded are growing, to see environments transformed by trees and children playing among them.

Tycoon’s great green gift: Ivy restaurant chain boss Richard Caring boosts Mail’s environment campaign by donating £100,000 to plant trees at a thousand schools across UK

A thousand schools are set to grow orchards thanks to a £100,000 gift to the Daily Mail’s Be A Tree Angel campaign by a top philanthropist.

The gift from Richard Caring, chairman of restaurant group Caprice Holdings, which includes The Ivy chain, will fund the scheme.

Trees are needed more than ever across Britain – especially in schools. By planting trees, pupils will learn how they help to keep the world alive by cleaning air and locking away the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, which is threatening the future of children worldwide.

As the Mail has highlighted, tens of thousands of mature trees in urban areas are being cut down across the UK and are often not replaced. It is estimated that 6,500 schools educating 2.6million children are in areas with dangerous levels of air pollution, with much of it caused by cars.

Pupils and parents at the Holy Trinity Church of England school in Gravesend planted crab apple, dogwood, dog rose and hazel trees as well as hawthorn bushes

Children are particularly vulnerable. Research shows they are exposed to pollution on the way to school – while their airways and lungs are still developing. Trees and hedgerows can act as barriers around schools, filtering out pollution.

The Be A Tree Angel campaign, organised with the Mail’s Christmas charity partner, The Tree Council, has urged readers to plant trees, or to donate money or Nectar points towards the effort.

More than 35,000 trees have been planted or pledged since the campaign was launched on November 23. The Mail has given away thousands of trees including oak, holly, willow and birch.

The Government, the Committee on Climate Change, scientists and environmentalists all agree that increasing tree cover is vital.

Just 13 per cent of Britain is woodland compared to more than 35 per cent on average in Europe.

Pupils at Bowling Park Primary School in Bradford prepare ground for tree planting 

Trees also help to keep towns and cities cool, prevent flooding by soaking up water and provide a home for birds, insects and other wildlife. Mr Caring, 71, who grew up in Finchley, north London, said he delighted in climbing trees as a boy but when he went back to where he once gathered conkers, there were none to be seen.

Writing for the Mail, he said it saddens him when he ‘passes schools every day on my way to work that are surrounded by concrete, with not a tree in sight’.

He added: ‘Sadly, many schools are in areas with dangerous levels of pollution, but trees act as natural filters’. Aware that his restaurant business has a carbon footprint, Mr Caring said the donation was a way to give something back and encourage children to think about the planet. Campaign backers include Boris Johnson and celebrities such as Joanna Lumley, Ben Fogle and Jilly Cooper.

Other supporters include the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, the National Trust and the Woodland Trust.

Sara Lom, of The Tree Council said: ‘We’re enormously grateful to Richard Caring for his amazing gift to plant 1,000 orchards in 1,000 schools. In future years, thanks to his generosity, hundreds of thousands of children will connect with… the natural world. 

‘The trees will also provide precious springtime nectar for early pollinators. We can all play our part in helping create a tree-filled future and Richard’s generosity will inspire others to plant and care for trees – whether it be a single oak grown from seed or orchards that burst into blossom across the nation.’

Rory Stewart, former environment minister and now mayoral candidate for London, said: ‘This is an amazing initiative from the Daily Mail and an amazing gift from Richard Caring.

‘Nothing can be more important than trees. They are great for air quality in London, for wildlife and for the climate. We should be planning millions more trees in London and involving children in that process.’ 

The Government’s ‘Tree Champion’, Sir William Worsley said: ‘Trees are vital to the health of our planet and our wellbeing. It is great to see the Daily Mail’s 1,000 orchards for 1,000 schools campaign opening up and improving the natural environment for young people.

‘Through this campaign and Defra’s Trees for Schools programme, delivered with the Woodland Trust and Community Forest Trust, we are giving hundreds of thousands more children the chance to get up close and personal with nature.’

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