RSPB partner with supermarket Aldi to connect more than half a million children with nature

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The partnership forms part of Aldi’s 25th anniversary celebrations and will see carrier bag profits donated to the RSPB. In the Midlands; Birmingham and Black Country children are already getting close to nature thanks to the partnership scheme.

A Hobby enjoying the rural area between Birmingham & Coventry.

Aldi’s partnership with the RSPB will see the supermarket donate all profits from carrier bag sales throughout England and Wales to the RSPB from July 2015.

Money raised through the three year partnership will allow Aldi and the RSPB to work together to connect more than half a million children to nature. The activity is set to improve children’s health and well-being while inspiring them to love and understand the natural world.

In the Midlands, a project is already underway in Birmingham and the Black Country with a designated Schools Outreach Project Officer and a team of volunteers who are working with schools to help children discover nature, improve their grounds and empower them to give nature a home. The initiative will be brought to Nottingham early next year with a similar post and team of volunteers.

In Easter 2016, the RSPB will be recruiting two further posts which will endeavour to support family activities in urban wild places, giving them first hand experience of nature right on their doorstep.

Profits from Aldi’s carrier bag sales in England and Wales are expected to see the charity receive donations in excess of £2m over a three year period. The supermarket has always charged for carrier bags since it first opened in the UK in April 1990 in an effort to reduce its environmental impact.

In October this year, UK Government department Defra will introduce a minimum 5p charge for single use carrier bags in a bid to reduce consumer usage and protect the environment. The move follows similar charges that have been introduced in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland in recent years.

Giles Hurley, Managing Director of Corporate Buying at Aldi, commented: “We are proud to have been among the first supermarkets to charge for carrier bags. This approach helps encourage responsible usage among customers and saves them money on their shopping.”

“It is an honour to partner with the RSPB. They are the UK’s biggest nature conservation charity, playing an important role in protecting our wildlife. Our partnership will leave a long-lasting legacy; a generation of children who are connected to nature, benefit from it, value our wildlife and care and understand enough about it to make a real difference.”

Martin Harper, the RSPB’s conservation director, added: “UK wildlife is in serious trouble. Around 60% of bees, birds, bugs and mammals are declining and the natural places they depend on are vanishing. Exciting the next generation about nature is vital. Our partnership with Aldi will create RSPB Giving Nature a Home gardens in school grounds and local green spaces, connecting more than half a million children with nature and helping turn the fortunes of UK wildlife around.

“Through engaging with communities who live, work and shop in or around Aldi stores we can make a real difference, together.”

Aldi currently charges 3p for a single use carrier bag, which will increase to 5p in July 2015. All profits generated from single use carrier bag sales in England and Wales from July 2015 will be donated to the RSPB, followed by donations from single use carrier bag sales in Scotland from the new year.