Wrea Green family reach out to Lancashire's grieving with kind hearted tree planting project

The kind hearted Bradshaw family, from Wrea Green, have launched a tree sapling project in which bereaved people can plant a tree in memory of people lost during the crisis.

The seven family members - grandma Ivy, dad Andy, mum Angie, their children Ashley and Aaron, and their partners Phil and Amy - have been living together at the family home during the outbreak to support each other.

As they ate a Sunday lunch, Andy came up with the idea to create a remembrance wood on a four acre plot in a field off Richmond Avenue.

Ashley said: “We’ve all come together at my mum and dad’s house for the last seven weeks or so. It can be a bit chaotic but we’re incredibly lucky to all be together during this.

“We all thought it was a lovely idea but weren’t too sure if or how we could actually do it.

“The next thing we knew he’d put it on Facebook!

“It’s absolutely heartbreaking to hear about people losing their loved ones and not being able to say a proper goodbye through all this.

“Hopefully the wood will play a small part in helping families who have lost their loved ones to pay their respects and say a proper goodbye, and will be somewhere they can come back to visit for years to come.

“My dad helped a friend plant a tree for someone they lost last year and we saw a lovely photo of it flourishing recently, which I think inspired him.”

So far more than 100 families have e-mailed the dedicated address at: [email protected]

And other people have offered their services, including an architect, celebrant, tree supplier and someone who releases white doves.