Green Team Newsletter – Winter 2025
As we move through the winter months, the Sheffield United Community Foundation Green Team has been busy welcoming new faces, strengthening partnerships, and continuing our work to support sustainability and nature across our community. Here’s what we’ve been up to this season.
In this issue:
👋Welcome to our new Sustainability Officer
🌱Green Team visit to Heeley City Farm
♻️Giving sportswear a second life with Unwanted FC
🌼NESST regenerates a local green space
🐦Nature Based Blades: Swift Boxes at King Ecgbert School
Welcome to our new Sustainability Officer 👋
We’re delighted to welcome Jack Parkes as the new Sustainability Officer at Sheffield United Community Foundation.
Jack joins us with a background in teaching geography, bringing a strong understanding of environmental issues and a passion for education. He’s excited for this new challenge and is already getting stuck into the exciting world of football and sustainability.
Jack is looking forward to working with staff, partners, and supporters to help embed sustainable practices across our programmes and make a positive impact both on and off the pitch.
Green Team Visit to Heeley City Farm 🌱
We held our first Green Team meeting of the year at Heeley City Farm, a fantastic local space at the heart of the community.
After enjoying a delicious spread provided by the farm team, we spent the afternoon helping out with the animals, including feeding, grooming and herding. We also had the chance to meet some of the farm’s reptiles.
Heeley City Farm is a great place to host a meeting or team-building activity, offering a unique opportunity to connect with nature while supporting a valued local organisation. To find out more, visit their website.
Giving Sportswear a Second Life with Unwanted FC ♻️
We’re pleased to highlight Unwanted FC, a creative initiative tackling waste in the sports and fashion industries through upcycling.
After years of working in the sector and seeing how much sportswear was being left behind, Unwanted FC transform unwanted sportswear into functional, wearable designs, from everyday carry items to practical accessories. Their work shows how the opportunities for garments to live on are endless.Find out more about their work at https://unwantedfc.com/
NESST Regenerates a Local Green Space 🌼
Our partners NESST have regenerated another site close to Bramall Lane, planting wildflowers and bulbs on an empty patch of grass next to Armando’s Scooters on Hill Street.
This project helps boost biodiversity and supports pollinators, while also improving the local environment for the surrounding community.
Nature Based Blades: Swift Boxes at King Ecgbert School 🐦
As part of our Nature Based Blades project, we’ve been working in partnership with Sheffield Swift Network and Mitie to install swift nesting boxes at King Ecgbert School.
Swifts are one of the UK’s most remarkable birds. They spend most of their lives in the air, even sleeping on the wing, and migrate thousands of miles each year. Despite this, swift numbers are declining rapidly due to the loss of suitable nesting sites in buildings, meaning they are now an endangered species in the UK.
By installing swift boxes, we can help provide safe places for these birds to nest and raise their young, supporting their long-term survival in Sheffield. If you’d like to find out more or learn how you can support this amazing bird, contact Sheffield Swift Network at sheffieldswiftnetwork@gmail.com
Thanks for reading this Winter edition of the Green Team Newsletter. If you have ideas, feedback or want to get more involved, please drop us a line at greenteam@sufc-community.co.uk.