About the project

We have been learning and growing outside together since 2022. In 2025 we found our new home in Hall Park. As a way of getting to know the site, we each chose a tree and visited it each week, noticing the changes through the seasons and spending time with it. Over time, our trees inspired creativity – we made art, wrote poems, imagined the tree’s perspective, took photos, shared knowledge.

Around this time, we became very inspired by the Melbourne Treemail Phenomenon, where people emailed messages to trees. We thought this was wonderful and found some of the messages very moving and thought-provoking.

Soon, we began to notice trees everywhere, and to take in more of the natural world around us – not just in Hall Park but elsewhere, too. As a group, we noticed that this simple act of nature connection had a big impact on us; the way we see ourselves and the way we see the world around us. Also, it was really fun and brought us a lot of joy and interest!

We started to imagine what would happen if everyone in Rushden knew a tree well. And so the idea of Rooted started to grow.

We imagine the whole town getting involved – people of all ages, backgrounds and life experiences. We invite people to explore the park and find a tree they like. Visit it regularly, spend time with it and have fun. As you get to know your tree over time, think about how you would most like to share the wonder of your tree with others.

When you have created a piece – be it written, visual or something else – fill in a submission form and deliver it into the council office at Rushden Hall (the door is to the right hand side of the building, round the back).

We will be putting on a free exhibition for the whole community in Spring 2027, and creating a book of submissions. We hope it will be a fun and inspiring project which brings the community together and also improves people’s wellbeing and connection to nature.

It’s the first time we’ve done anything like this and we were SO excited and amazed when the National Lottery Community Fund said they would like to support us. We would like to thank them and Rushden Town Council for listening to our ideas and trusting us to make a difference.