Theatre leader Sheila planting 720 trees in Cheltenham!

Last year, Sheila Mander devised a theatre piece for children, all about the environment, which has inspired her to to "do something positive" for her grandchildren's future.

"I'm not doing this for me, because I'll be dead, I'm doing it for young people," she said.

She has now been gifted 720 trees to plant at Ellenborough Park hotel in Cheltenham.

Urging others to join in she added: "Come on everybody, let's get on with it, lets rock the world."

'Native tree hedgerow'

Councillor for Tewkesbury, Nigel Adcock, who gifted the trees, said the project will also help Gloucestershire County Council restore its tree numbers lost due to ash dieback.

"We're putting in a hedgerow of native trees that will be planted by young people and their parents," he said.

"I think that aspect of it is really important.. "Sheila is obviously an extremely dynamic person and is able to enthuse young people, which is fantastic.

"Over the past few years the schemes that we've done have been predominantly older people, so working with young people is the way we need to go."

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Image credit: Sheila Manders

Image Description: Sheila backstage using two thumbs to point at herself

This is an edited extract from an original article on the bbc news website. Please view the full article here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-67981770