Shrewsbury School join nationwide initiative to celebrate the Queen's Jubilee

Three new Elm trees have been planted at Shrewsbury School to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee as part of a nationwide campaign called The Queen’s Green Canopy.  

On Friday afternoon, Headmaster Leo Winkley, Chair of Governors Tim Haynes, Deputy Lieutenant of Shropshire and Estates Governor David Stacey, Biology teacher Jackie Matthews, and Eco Committee pupil leaders Ella H (MSH, UVI) and Harry C (Ch, UVI) planted the new additions to the site on the Kennedy Road entrance.  

The Queen’s Green Canopy (QGC) is a unique tree planting initiative created to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022 which invites people from across the United Kingdom to “Plant a Tree for the Jubilee”. With a focus on planting sustainably, the QGC encourages the planting of trees to create a legacy in honour of The Queen’s leadership of the Nation, which will benefit future generations. 

Headmaster Leo Winkley said: “With over 1,000 trees on our School site, it is wonderful to add further to the richness of our surroundings by taking part in the Queen’s Green Canopy.  The Shrewsbury School community is proud of our association with Her Majesty The Queen, who visited early in her reign in 1953.  We plant these magnificent Elms in a sincere tribute to Her Majesty The Queen in her Platinum Jubilee Year.” 

Deputy Lieutenant of Shropshire and Estates Governor David Stacey added: “As a governor of Shrewsbury School and a tree enthusiast, it is a great honour to be participating in the Queen’s Green Canopy, the inspired initiative to mark Her Majesty’s Jubilee.    

“Planting a tree, the shade of which the next generation will enjoy, is a quintessentially civilised act. The pupils and staff of Shrewsbury School are the beneficiaries of some magnificent specimen trees planted in the spectacular school grounds, in many cases, more than a century ago.   

“It is wonderful to imagine the elms we are planting today 100 years from now on a beautiful summer’s day.” 

Head of the Eco Committee and Biology teacher Jackie Matthews, said: “Both the Queen’s Diamond and Platinum Jubilee celebrations have been marked by actions to protect natural British ecosystems, wildflower meadows and woodlands. Restoring and creating new nature-friendly sites around School is one of the Eco Committee’s most passionate aims, and so we are delighted to be planting two legacy trees today at School.” 

Pupil leaders of the Eco Committee Ella H and Harry C added: “We are delighted to see cooperation between the governors, school leadership and the Eco committee to support this nationwide project. We, as the Eco Committee cannot be more excited that the school has decided to go ahead with this idea.  

“The school has chosen to plant disease resistant English elms, which were thought to have been introduced by out Bronze age ancestors. These trees will provide habitat and food for countless birds, small mammals and insects and by planting them here, we hope to increase the school's overall biodiversity and share our space with different creatures.”