AN ANDOVER charity has emerged victorious as one of only three winners in Hampshire of the esteemed King’s Award for Voluntary Service (KAVS).

Andover Trees United (ATU), founded in 2011 by Wendy Davis, won the award, equivalent to an MBE, for its support to the community.

The national honour recognises exceptional contributions made to local communities by groups devotedly volunteering their time for the benefit of others.

It sets a benchmark for excellence in volunteering, acknowledging work of the highest standard.

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Founded in 2011 by Wendy Davis, ATU aims to inspire young people in the Andover area to learn about and care for the environment.

The organisation worked collaboratively with local schools to establish a Tree Planting Day, leading to the creation of Harmony Woods, one of Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee Woods in 2011.

It marked the commencement of a decade-long initiative for 10,000 children to plant 10,000 trees.

Operated and supported by a dedicated network of volunteers, ATU engages with the natural world through tree planting, woodland maintenance, and diverse community activities.

From green crafts to woodworking, music, and science, the organization fosters an environment where the community can learn about and connect with nature.

Beyond tree planting, ATU supports young people through various initiatives, including ‘Plant For The Planet’ academies, the Nature in Harmony Exchange Project youth team, a graduate internship scheme, sessions for scouting, guiding, and young carer groups, school holiday programs, arts activities, an annual community archaeology dig, and more.

In 2017, the organisation introduced ‘Six Trees and Six Flowers,’ a programme integrating arts and nature to enhance understanding and care for the natural world in mainstream teaching.

The subsequent ‘Voices in Harmony’ project utilised music to achieve similar goals, extending the impact beyond schools into the broader community.

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Ms Davies said: “Firstly, I would like to say how honoured and grateful we are to have received this award, which will highlight all the hard work we have done. The KAVS award will hopefully bring us elevation, as the work that we do is still not as high a priority within UK society as it should be. Having our work acknowledged by an award so prestigious as KAVS is immeasurable. To have our volunteers valued so much and the tireless work they do acknowledged gives us the motivation to continue.

"This award will allow our community to see our charity and its efforts in a new light, that we hope will inspire and encourage more people to come to be a part of our ever-growing community, be it often or not. The level of this award will have the desired impact of letting people know the importance of the work that we do, because environmental work still struggles to have the level of urgency that is required, in people's everyday lives that it needs to be. 

"The awards allow us to tell everyone involved, from the thousands of school children to the incredibly hard-working team that has made it all possible, well done! The work you have done IS important and amazing. We hope it may also allow us to reach a much wider audience, giving us the opportunity to demonstrate that this model is achievable at the community level, and has genuine benefit to people of all ages and the institutions within it. We hope to inspire communities outside of our own and promote the idea to policymakers to support the replication of the ATU model up and down the country.”