Record-Breaking Christmas Tree Recycling Scheme raises over £119,000!

• 15 January 2026

In just three days, from 8 – 10 January 2026 an incredible 4,370 real Christmas trees were collected by more than 170 volunteers across Cambridgeshire

This remarkable initiative, which began eleven years ago – when just 400 trees were collected, has grown into one of the largest collections in the country, thanks to the incredible support from the Cambridgeshire community.

Volunteers hit the roads in vans, trucks, Land Rovers with trailers, and even camper vans, following more than 110 carefully planned routes. The operation was a true community effort, with volunteers coming from local businesses, organisations, as well as many loyal supporters of the Charity, with many taking time off work and renting their own vehicles to help out.

 

Businesses that generously donated vehicles and teams included Advanced Cleaning Services, A Class Property Care, Alleycat, Area Cladding, Barclays, Barnes Group, BHL Removers, Cambridge University Press and Assessment, Carter Jones, Compass IT Support, Cooke Curtis & Co, The Courier Company, Ely Logistics, Enterprise, Hill Group, HSBC, Huttie Group, J2B Logistics, Project Cambridge, QAV Global, Springboard and the Welch Group alongside organisations such as The Rotary Club of Cambridge.

Just three chippers were responsible for recycling the trees into reusable chippings,  kindly manned by Brookfields Contracting, CG Tree Services and Grant Anderson Tree Surgery. Special thanks also go to Scotsdales Garden Centre, Cambridge Rugby Club, Cambridge City Football Club, Morrisons Cambourne, Rectory Farm, Milton Country Park and Shepreth Wildlife Park for providing drop-off sites.

 

 

Sharon Allen, CEO of Arthur Rank Hospice Charity, said: “What an incredible start to 2026! A big thank you to everyone who has made this possible. We managed to collect over 4,300 trees in just 3 days, thanks to the 170 dedicated volunteers who braved the freezing cold and wet weather. We also want to thank everyone who donated to the Hospice to have their tree collected, across Cambridgeshire. We could not do this fundraising scheme without the many local businesses who gave up their time and donated vehicles to collect the trees. We are staggered by the £119,000 in donations, what an amazing achievement, and with funding cuts on the horizon we are incredibly grateful for the continued generosity.”

 

 

Our ‘Outstanding’ services are provided free of charge to patients and their families. Our aim being to provide the highest quality care, helping people to make every moment count. You can find out more about how we are funded here: arhc.org.uk/how-we-are-funded.