The Reader is launching a new series of events to celebrate 80 years since VE Day

This spring The Reader is collaborating with Mersey Forest to launch new nature inspired Poetry Walks, school heritage trips and a VE Day Garden Party to mark 80 years since the end of the Second World War.

New spring poetry walks, school heritage trips and a Garden Party have been announced at Calderstones Park to commemorate the 80^th anniversary of VE Day. Mersey Forest, the Cheshire and Merseyside community forest has commissioned The Reader – the UK’s biggest Shared Reading charity – to run these three events as part of The Oaks at 80 project.

The project, which launched in Calderstones Park on Remembrance Day in November last year, will see local communities encouraged to collect seeds and plant oak trees in 2025 to honour the service men, women and civilians from across the region who helped defend Britain during the Second World War.

Mary Crotty, The Reader’s Engagement Manager at Calderstones Park, said:

“The Reader is thrilled to be launching the first of three new events at Calderstones Park this month in collaboration with Mersey Forest.

“We were delighted Oaks at 80 was launched here, in the park, with the planting of a new oak tree near to the 1,000-year-old Allerton Oak. During the Second World War, acorns and leaves from the tree were sent with letters to local soldiers fighting on the frontline to remind them of home.

“All three of our events are designed to inspire adults and the next generation to nurture the environment, highlighting the importance of trees and woodlands for biodiversity, climate resilience and a sustainable future. 

“As the team at Mersey Forest expressed so eloquently at the project launch, oak trees embody strength, resilience and longevity – virtues that resonate deeply with the sacrifices made during the Second World War and the hopeful spirit of peace that followed.”

A new free weekly Poetry Walk is set to begin at the start of spring from this Sunday (23 March) between 11am and 12noon. It will be a restorative walk around the park with its many exotic plants and trees accompanied by reflective poems. Walkers meet on the Mansion House steps.

During spring eight fully-funded new Step Back in Time School Heritage Trips will also be launching for children aged seven to 11 from local schools. Pupils will go on an educational nature walk learning about some of the trees in the park, including the Allerton Oak, voted England’s tree of the year in 2019 which has connection with World War II. 

Pupils will also have an opportunity to create a class mural based on what a new oak tree might see in a thousand years’ time and create their own poems based on the Allerton Oak. The tours will be led by an experienced team of Heritage Storyhunters and Calderstones heritage volunteers.

The third event taking place is a special family-friendly Garden Party on Sunday 11 May, 11am-5pm, celebrating Victory in Europe or VE Day when the war ended in 1945 and celebrations took place across the world.

All are welcome to join in, pop up a deckchair or lay out their picnic blanket in the stunning ‘secret’ walled garden at the Grade II listed Mansion House for a chilled afternoon with live music from the Liverpool Show Choir, a female-led community choir who sing musical theatre, pop, gospel and folk.

Highlights will include a free bookable Mansion House Heritage tour at 11am, two Shared Reading taster sessions at 11.30am and 1.30pm, as well as seed planting. 

There will also be a BBQ, summer tipples, the Ice Cream cart and crafts, along with Library on the Lawn – a handpicked selection of books for adults and children to explore. Entry is free with donations welcomed.

Paul Nolan, Director of the Mersey Forest, said:

“Oaks at 80 is about remembering the past and planting for the future. By coming together to plant trees, we not only honour the sacrifices of those who lived through World War II but also create a long-lasting commemoration, that will benefit our communities and environment for generations to come.”

For further information about The Reader visit here.

For further information about The Mersey Forest and Oaks at 80 project visit here.

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