Lifelines

Lifelines connects faith and community groups from all traditions with farmers, helping to plant a network of hedgerows and wildlife corridors across the country.

Lifelines is a practical leadership and volunteering programme that brings together people across differences of all kinds, for the sake of the Earth.

Our residential train-the-trainers weekend workshop teaches community and faith leaders the practical skills of planting hedgerows and leading a volunteering weekend. Each leader then recruits volunteers from within their community, and is partnered with another group.

Each pair of groups then spends a weekend with one of our participating farms on an unforgettable weekend of tree-planting. Groups have an immersive experience of spiritual ecology in action, build human relationships across differences, and come away with a deeper knowledge and love for the natural world. 

Interested in becoming a group leader?
Fill in a  Lifelines Group Leader Application Form

Are you a farmer/landowner looking to plant a hedgerow or woodland on your land?
Information document for farms
Fill in a Lifelines Farmer/Landowner Application Form 2025/26

Why Hedgerows?

Hedgerows are amazing. They unite and connect habitats. They provide homes and food to thousands of species of birds, mammals, and insects, and they create safe corridors for them to move through the country. They store carbon in their deep roots, improve soil quality, and reduce flood risk. They provide birdsong and blossom, and they transform our footpaths. They are a lifeline for the natural world, and for us too. With UK biodiversity plummeting and global carbon emissions still soaring, it's time to put our differences aside, get our hands in the earth, and start planting!

Meet some Lifelines farmers

Camilla Mays

A year and a half ago I took 4.5 acres of depleted pasture via the Ecological Land Cooperative and have since been working very hard to turn this into a space teeming with life. Besides establishing a small no- dig market garden, which now supplies my local community with fresh, chemical free veg, I am dedicating areas to nature and encouraging biodiversity back to the land here. A living hedgerow here connecting my newly established woodland would be an extremely positive addition and I am very pleased that the process of doing so can be shared and enjoyed by groups of people for whom this will bring new skills and experiences. offgridorganics

Guy & Geetie

The Baddaford Farm Collective consists of six independent enterprises; Vital Seeds, Incredible Vegetables, Green Ginger Organics, Red Earth Herbs, Pigment Plants Dyes and Baddaford Farm Partnership. The aim of the Baddaford Farm Collective is to make a small part of the world more like the world we want to live in and to promote beauty, sustainability and social justice within an economically viable farm. The Farm consists of 154 acres of a rolling Devon valley. Around 80 acres of the farm is managed by Guy, Milan and the team under Baddaford Farm Partnership, which specialises in growing organic perennial fruit and vegetable crops. These crops are almost entirely supplied to Riverford Organic Farmers and The Bull Organic Inn.

Dave Thomas

I have farmed here at Llangwendr for over 20 years and care deeply about the environment, flora and wildlife. The farm is worked organically and I keep sheep, horses and honeybees which, as well as producing natural raw honey, also provide a marked increase in pollination on the farm and beyond. This gives a huge boost to the insects and birds living in the area. I also feel that urban and country communities would benefit from more collaboration so that a deeper understanding of the practicalities of farming and the environment can be achieved.

Dr. Lufti & Ruby Radwan

Willowbrook Farm was established in 2002 by Dr. Lufti Radwan and his wife Ruby Radwan, who left their conventional academic careers, with their young family in tow, to pursue a lifestyle of harmony with nature. The farm produces ethical and sustainable food and is the first Halal and Tayyib farm in the UK, meaning that the animals are reared naturally and humanely in accordance with Islamic principles of stewardship of nature. The farm aims to minimise its environmental impact by using renewable energy, recycling waste, preserving biodiversity, and building with natural materials. The farm also hosts weekend visits, eco-camping, and educational events for the public. The farm has been praised for its resilience and innovation and strong community links.

Meet Lifelines Group Leaders

Rayya Ali

Iraqi Community

Becoming a Lifelines Leader allowed me to both disconnect from city life and connect with nature, whilst also being able to share this opportunity with a group of people who I felt would benefit from the same experience. My volunteers were Iraqis of different backgrounds, from those of faith and none and everything in between, those who grew up in Iraq and those who didn't, and from a range of professions and ages. From welcoming dawn with a stretch on frosty mornings to getting my hands in the soil and planting new hedgerow and trees, I found a new appreciation for things we often take for granted. Whilst meaningful and moving on an individual level, it was also a particularly poignant time to think about the connections to and care for land that we belong to or visit. I learnt a lot from the challenges of being a leader, and hope to have the opportunity to do it all over again.

Kiran Arwani

London Ismaili Centre

Being a lifelines leader was indescribable. The amount of connection, peace and fulfilment that I gained from leading a weekend was much more than I could have expected and has stuck with me ever since. It would be such an honour to not only serve again, but to spread this joy and opportunity for respite and service.

Max Girardeau

The Visionaries

Taking part in Lifelines has been a highlight of the year the last two years. It's such a privilege to build alliances with so many different communities and faith groups, each exploring and sharing our unique ways of being in service to life.

Where we've planted so far

47,320
Trees Planted

9,269
meters of hedgerow  

1.5
Hectares
of woodland

The Summer Berry Company
50.81959942111527, -0.7166582814262128
Ahimsa Farm
52.42577692124444, -1.7340726816337313
Glynhynod farm
52.08211888535126, -4.378266482769714
Milden Hall
52.08205659177747, 0.8372556224361575
Cold Newton Lodge
52.63724518847911, -0.9679759157332866
Cocklebury Farm
51.3466949213745, -1.8235954071155347
Sadeh Farm
51.364984064365295, 0.14961579309002143
Drala Jong
52.02750210554916, -4.311267109283208
St Madoc Centre
51.61837412806166, -4.268456778442354
Coal Pit Farm
51.88168243100802, -3.0338399301583867
Park Farm
52.11571594916601, 0.7929311154721383
Preston Farm
51.34198520973473, 0.19082703541360924
Saxneat Wood
52.190968013649844, 1.1381806668510126
William Robinson
51.09881019774765, -0.05730936253378139
Westerlands
50.95483769928001, -0.6503658079566722
Willowbrooke
51.843665283515556, -1.282787850347646
The Vedenta
53.19481332531179, -0.4826476754346134
Baddaford
50.49138617322364, -3.7573517136419103
Sharpham
50.4097315839505, -3.6521134797884054
Three Pools
51.850560882324196, -2.940832401722045
Ysgubor (High Cloud)
51.75126039357355, -2.8113461169643204
Hilfield Fridary
50.83709377501639, -2.525839512324178
Chettle
50.92339586942259, -2.071215531822997
Priory Farm
52.059252751961225, 0.8239128716027175
Othona
51.73330749655167, 0.9382939854854608
William
51.353685717523085, 0.1782155696825811
Boxted Hall
52.12350174188793, 0.6711601532513661
Off-Grid Organics
51.02659969211202, -2.5707149823416495

Enquire for your group or Farm

Are you part of a faith or community group that cares about the environment or do you have a farm that would benefit from a new hedgerow?

Lifelines connects faith and non-faith groups from all traditions with farmers, helping to plant a network of hedgerows and wildlife corridors across the country.

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Enquire for your group OR Farm