Based near central Salford, the Laudato Si’ Centre is transforming an area of disused woodland into a forest school and community facility – with a little help from road construction solutions by Thermal Road Repairs (TRR).
About the Laudato Si’ Centre
The Laudato Si’ Centre is designed to educate children and others about the environment and how it should be cared for. They were awarded a £30,000 grant from the Greater Manchester Green Spaces Fund, which funded tasks like removing diseased or damaged trees and invasive species, planting native species and shrubs and building a variety of teaching, activity and contemplation areas. The project will also see the creation of a briefing zone at the entrance to the woods with log seating and a canopy, as well as a campfire area and other activity stations within the woodland.
A Forest School and other associated sessions will run in the rehabilitated woodland five days a week, teaching activities such as shelter building, campfire cooking, wood carving and biodiversity studies. The 3,250 sq m space will also host activities such as willow weaving, storytelling and mindfulness.
The Laudato Si’ Centre at Wardley Hall was first developed in 2019 as a response to an international call by Pope Francis to people of all faiths in his letter ‘Laudato Si’ – Care for Our Common Home’. The Centre is named after the Pope’s letter, which asked “every person living on this planet” for an inclusive dialogue about how we should shape the future of our planet.
How We Contributed
Thermal Road Repairs provided an additional £30,000 of funding to construct a 50m-long accessible path leading around the forest. Completed in mid-June 2023, the path now provides access to the woodland for all.
This project took three weeks to complete, with three team members working full time under the supervision of John Walsh. As a Permanent Deacon of the Catholic church, and with 44 years of road construction and maintenance under his belt, this project saw two important parts of his life come together: “As a Catholic, spreading the Good News, the Gospel, is a priority - putting faith into action,” he says. “I was glad to do this work at the Laudato Si’ Centre because the centre is important for local communities. It brings together so many different groups of people, irrespective of their backgrounds, cultures, and faiths.”
In terms of process, the first task was to select a route for the winding path so that damage to tree roots was minimised. This was then graded, laid with recycled crushed stone sub-base and then topped with hogging – a natural mixture of clays, sands and gravels. TRR used recycled plastic edging rather than carbon-intensive concrete.
“I was very happy for Thermal Road Repairs to contribute to the centre and to their woodland project,” says TRR managing director Aidan Conway. “For us, looking after the environment, working with disadvantaged groups and giving back to our local community are at the heart of what we do, so it felt like this project fitted perfectly.
Dr Emma Gardner, Head of Environment at the Diocese of Salford, said: “We are absolutely delighted with the support from Thermal Road Repairs. The pathway, which has been designed to be accessible by wheelchair users, has opened the woodland so we can now get started with the programmes and activities for all. The work was completed with care for our common home at the heart, aligning with the mission of the Centre.”
TRR wishes the Laudato Si’ Centre every success with its ongoing woodlands project; we look forward to seeing the woodland in action once the main works have been completed.
Thermal Road Repairs is a road construction company which supplies systems to improve the quality, cost and time efficiency of road repairs and paving – all at a far lower environmental cost than traditional methods. We invest heavily in R&D to create new technologies and to continuously improve existing ones. Get in touch with us for more information.
Thermal Road Repairs: Decarbonising the asphalt repair industry.
High output. Low emission. Zero waste. Permanent solution.