Friends of Thringstone and Friends of Grace Dieu held a joint work party on Sunday 16^th January to clear the local brook, removing blockages from the little bridge and continuing to work down-stream towards the servants' bridge to remove rubbish and tree branches. If you enjoy the great outdoors and working as part of a friendly and enthusiastic team, contact Friends of Thringstone to find out about future work parties.

Thousands of businesses, charities, schools, councils and others will run events during Climate Week on 21-27 March 2011. They will show what can be achieved, share ideas and encourage thousands more to act during the rest of the year.

Here in North West Leicestershire we aim to have the most events happening anywhere in the country under the banner of the Green Footprints Challenge. So have a think about how your community, school, business or group can get involved, let us know about your event and let us help you promote it.

And don't forget to sign up for the Climate Week Challenge, which will be held on Monday 21^st March. Thousands of people across the country will be taking the same challenge at exactly the same time - it's ideal for schools, businesses and groups. It’s top secret until the day so sign up now tomake sure you don't miss out on all the fun.

An opportunity to show off your creative talents and your passion for composting

Homemade compost is great for the garden and diverts tonnes of food waste from landfill. Now Garden Organic is calling for people to put their passion for compost on paper for its poster competition to urge more of us to make our own for Compost Awareness Week Saturday 1 – 7 May 2011.

Open to everyone, children and adults, the Garden Organic ‘Celebrate Compost’ poster competition will raise awareness and celebrate everything there is to know about the lovely, crumbly brown stuff.

Garden Organic’s, Jane Griffiths, said, “Our network of Master Composters promote home compost at every opportunity and it was one of them, Rodney Weston, that came up with the ‘Celebrate Compost’ idea. With this competition we want to see people’s inventive, creative and eye-catching ideas for promoting compost and we also want to see entries that can help other people understand the importance of home composting for the environment, and for our gardens.”

The competition winner can look forward to an exciting eco prize and the winning ‘Celebrate Compost’ poster will also be displayed on the Garden Organic, Community Composting Network and Recycle Now website during Compost Awareness Week 1 - 7 May 2011. Garden Organic’s network of over 500 Master Composters will also use the poster design at community events.

To enter please obtain an entry form from fflp@gardenorganic.org.uk, from the Garden Organic website: www.gardenorganic.org.uk, or write to ‘Celebrate Compost’ Competition’, Ryton Gardens, Wolston Lane, Warwickshire, CV8 3LG. Closing date for entries is 28 February 2011. The winner will be announced on the Garden Organic website on Monday 21 of March 2011.

The Parish Plan Action Group of Oakthorpe, Donisthorpe and Acresford has been busy planting daffodils in the three parishes, with help from children from Oakthorpe and Donisthorpe Primary Schools and residents of the parishes. A planting event took place on Saturday 6^th November, which was followed by tea and cakes at Oakthorpe Leisure Centre, which were thoroughly enjoyed by all that helped on the day. Over 2000 bulbs were planted this Autumn, which will create a splash of colour across the parishes in the Spring.

Funding for the scheme was provided by Oakthorpe, Donisthorpe and Acresford Parish Council, the Chairman of the Parish Council, Chris Keeley said “The Parish Council is delighted to support the Parish Plan Action Group; this type of scheme has clear environmental and community benefits and I’m really looking forward to seeing all the daffodils in the Spring”.

Well, we managed to hand out this year's Free Trees just in time before the snow really set in this week. We set up give-away stations in Ashby, Coalville, Castle Donington and Diseworth on Sunday 28th November, with over five hundred people braving sub-zero temperatures to pick up their free trees. Many thanks to Chris, Laura, Chris and Kate (pictured), our very enthusiastic graduate volunteers from Barratt Homes, who helped us hand out well over a thousand trees on the day.

The coalition Government is planning to introduce legislation to make it possible to have energy efficient measures carried out through the Green Deal from autumn 2012. The Government views the Green Deal as a way of making your home or business more energy efficient – whether you own or rent it – and paying for the work from the savings on your energy bill. If you are a local resident and would like some advice on improving your home's energy efficiency, please contact the Council's Energy Adviser on 01530 454566.

Have you checked out this wonderful website that is introduced by Sir David Attenborough? Wildlife films and photos are vital weapons in the battle to save the world's endangered biodiversity from the brink of extinction. So, with the help of the world’s best filmmakers, photographers, conservationists and scientists, ARKive is creating the ultimate multimedia guide to the world's endangered species. Prepare to feast your eyes.

Councils across Leicestershire and Rutland have today published statements outlining what they have been doing to tackle climate change. The initiative marks the ten year anniversary of the Nottingham Declaration – a document all the authorities have signed pledging to work towards reducing their CO2 emissions and protecting the environment. North West Leicestershire District Council signed the Declaration in November 2006 and went on to develop the Green Footprints Challenge in order to reduce CO2 emissions across the district. Read more about what's been happening.

The Friends of Thringstone joined forces with 1188 (Coalville) Squadron ATC and Squadron F of the Coalville ACF to carry out a litter pick of the area on Saturday 30th October. The group managed to collect 40 bags of rubbish plus an old wheelbarrow, a sink unit and child's toy, and a dustbin taken into the woods was retrieved in just less than 3 hours' work. This is a record for the group, and a testament to the hard work of the volunteers and cadets who worked on the litter pick. As a thank you for all their hard work, the Friends group then provided a lovely hot meal for the litter pickers at the Thringstone Members' Club.

The Friends of Thringstone would like to especially thank the Army and Air cadets, who were a real pleasure to work with and very industrious, well mannered and polite. All groups are looking forward to working together again in the future.

The latest issue from Climate East Midlands' 'The Wrapper' is now available to download from their website, where you'll find an interesting mix of news, features and stories from around the region. Find out more about the UK's first gasification plant in Boston, Lincolnshire and the story of a lucky National Trust gardener from Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire who went to France to discover more about gardening in a warmer climate.