By providing a cooling effect in heatwaves and more resilience to extreme weather events, the trees will also improve local air quality, increase carbon storage and surface water management, and create a more diverse place for wildlife to flourish.

The planting programme in Blantyre comes after the council signed a concordat agreement with the Clyde Climate Forest committing to help plant 18 million trees by 2032 across Glasgow City Region.

The first tree plantings were at Springwell Park and Ballantrae Road in Blantyre.

Children from High Blantyre Primary School worked with staff from the environmental charity Trees for Cities, and The Conservation Volunteers, who are Clyde Climate Forest delivery partners, to help plant more than 1900 trees to enhance existing woodland and create new areas.

Councillor Norman Rae, the chair of the council’s Climate and Sustainability Committee, said: “This is a fantastic project that is part of a much bigger plan to tackle some of the key challenges we all face, from the climate and biodiversity crisis to declining health and well-being.

“Trees are part of the solution to some of these issues. They work to restore the environmental and social balance in our communities and contribute to the conditions for our economic success.

“Planting trees, as well as enhancing the look and feel of our local communities, provide long term benefits as they grow and enrich the local biodiversity in our communities.”

Groups can share their stories on social media using the hashtag #ScotClimateWeek – more information is also available on the Stories for Change page.

And you can watch another film about the work of Biggar Food Growing Group on our YouTube channel https://youtu.be/1vXTX0qdL3M

If you want to help combat climate change please go to the council’s website for more information about what you can do to help the environment and the council’s sustainable development and climate change strategy for 2022 to 2027

The Clyde Climate Forest is part of the Glasgow & Clyde Valley Green Network and is also being delivered in partnership with Green Action Trust, Glasgow City Region, Trees for Cities, Scottish Forestry and Woodland Trust Scotland with funding from the UK Government Shared Prosperity Fund.