Farleigh Hospice are celebrating their successful annual Christmas tree recycling fundraiser - with 3,400 trees collected in just three days. 

Trees were taken to a Boreham collection hub for use as biomass in boilers, with a separate collection organised by Burnham Rugby Club with Maldon Council, with over 220 trees to be chipped and used on pathways.  

The Farleigh Hospice fundraising teams visited homes and businesses in Braintree, Burnham, Chelmsford, Coggeshall, Danbury, Dunmow, Halstead, Kelvedon, Maldon, Southminster, South Woodham Ferrers, Stock, Witham and Writtle as well as the surrounding villages and areas to collect unwanted trees from doorsteps.

The team was helped by an army of over 100 volunteers in 57 vehicles who set off early each day in freezing temperatures to support the local hospice.

Louis from G&B Finch (Credit: Farleigh Hospice)

The Only Way Is Essex star, Gemma Collins, was among one of the many who was visited by the team. 

She described the volunteers from Chandler Materials who collected her trees as "amazing". 

Anyone registering a tree for collection could give a donation to Farleigh. The charity provides specialist hospice care and support, free of charge, to people in mid Essex who are affected by life-limiting illnesses and bereavement.

Debbie de Boltz, Farleigh's Head of Fundraising, said, "It has been a very cold and exhausting three days but absolutely amazing knowing how much money our 'treecycle' has raised for the hospice. 

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Work begins to shred the Christmas trees. (Credit Farleigh Hospice)

"A huge thank-you to all of the amazing volunteers, companies, organisations, councils and my colleagues at Farleigh who have helped us to collect and recycle so many trees in such a short time.

According to The Carbon Trust, chipping a Christmas tree to spread on the ground can reduce its carbon footprint by up to 80%. 

"We are delighted that Farleigh's tree recycling service is having such a positive impact on the environment, while raising a fantastic £70,000." Debbie added.



Staff from Farleigh's inpatient unit all smiles with the success. (Credit: Farleigh Hospice)

"This equates to 2,121 specialist palliative nursing hours which is a truly remarkable achievement, all due to our supportive community."

Farleigh Hospice is a local specialist care and support provider for those affected by life-limiting illnesses and bereavement across mid Essex.

It costs over £21,270 every day for Farleigh Hospice to provide its services.