The people of Hartlepool are coming together to celebrate the town’s cultural heritage of trees through a remarkable new exhibition and event during National Tree Week.
Wednesday 26 November will see the official stakeholder launch of ‘Stories from Hartlepool’s Parks’ in Hartlepool Art Gallery from 10.30am - 12.30pm.
Led by Trees For Cities – the only UK charity working at a national scale to improve people’s lives by planting and caring for trees in cities – with support from Hartlepool Borough Council, the project has brought together residents of all ages to share their favourite stories linked to the town’s green spaces, to pass down through the generations.
Working with community groups, care homes, schools and youth organisations, the stories have been gathered and brought to life through illustrations and artworks that will be on show in the Art Gallery until Sunday 30 November.
Wednesday’s launch day will feature organisations and residents who have been involved in the project. Members of the public are also invited to come along and enjoy the event!
There will be free craft activities from the Northern School of Art, a free tree giveaway by The Woodland Trust and the unveiling of a ‘community pledge tree’ created by welding apprentices from Hartlepool College of Further Education.
Wednesday’s launch day will be preceded by a separate community launch day on Saturday 22 November for community groups and residents invited by Trees for Cities.
Both activities aim to help reconnect the community with nature, celebrating the wonder of trees and championing a healthy and sustainable urban forest for Hartlepool.
Stories from Hartlepool’s Parks forms part of the Tree Equity for Hartlepool Project led by Trees for Cities and part-funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and The Linbury Trust, with support from Hartlepool Borough Council, Tees Community Forest, The Woodland Trust, Thirteen Housing Group and Treeconomics.
The project aims to tackle the low number of trees in Hartlepool, using new tree mapping technology to plant trees in communities where they are needed most.
New trees will be planted across at least ten hectares in nature-deprived areas across Hartlepool over the next two years, with the first community planting days planned for early 2026.
Roddy Shaw, Senior Development Manager at Trees for Cities, said: “We are delighted to launch Stories from Hartlepool's Parks in partnership with Hartlepool Borough Council to celebrate the cultural heritage of the town's green spaces with the wider community.
“This initiative captures the ambitions of our Tree Equity for Hartlepool project, ensuring that everyone can share in the benefits of a greener, healthier and more equitable urban forest for Hartlepool, now and for generations to come.”
Councillor Pamela Hargreaves, Leader of Hartlepool Borough Council, said: "This is about even more than trees – it’s about people, pride and our future.
“Through our fantastic partnership with Trees for Cities, Hartlepool is coming together to celebrate our green spaces and make sure they thrive for generations to come.
“Hartlepool is not just being regenerated on economic, leisure and cultural fronts, its green spaces are being regenerated too.
“Tree Equity for Hartlepool is a massively exciting project and I hope all our residents will get involved in helping to support it.”