In brief: Deloitte Jersey has donated £18,000 to Jersey Trees for Life to fund new gardens and tree planting at primary schools across the island. The gift forms part of a broader partnership that has seen the firm contribute more than £20,000 to the charity since late 2025, with staff also volunteering their time at community events.
Roots in the Community
Hundreds of Jersey schoolchildren are set to benefit from new outdoor learning spaces this winter, after Deloitte Jersey handed over an £18,000 donation to Jersey Trees for Life, Channel Eye reports. The funds will go towards planting hundreds of trees at primary schools across the island, creating gardens where pupils can learn about nature and biodiversity while spending time in green spaces.
Jersey Trees for Life became Deloitte Jersey’s Social Impact charity partner in the summer of 2025, and the relationship has clearly taken root. Alex Morel, Chief Executive Officer at Jersey Trees for Life, confirmed that Deloitte has donated over £20,000 to the charity since late 2025, giving the organisation the resources it needs to push ahead with its school planting programme this winter.
Marc Cleeve, Audit and Assurance Partner at Deloitte in Jersey, said: “We’re proud to see our donation will help create new school gardens and give the next generation more opportunities to connect with the natural environment. Our aim is to give hundreds of children the chance to learn outdoors and develop a real appreciation for nature that will hopefully stay with them for life.”
Running for the Trees
The partnership has extended well beyond a simple cheque. Deloitte sponsored the 6 km and 12 km trails at Jersey Trees for Life’s third annual Run for the Trees event, held at Val de la Mare in September. Around 200 runners, walkers, volunteers and supporters took part, and the event raised more than £5,500. Those proceeds will go towards creating new paths through the arboretum and adding botanical labels to the specimen trees there.
Thirteen Deloitte employees volunteered on the day, helping with preparations, marshalling routes and supporting participants, while colleagues from the firm’s audit and tax teams also pulled on their trainers to take part in the 3 km, 6 km and 12 km distances. Cleeve noted that the enthusiasm shown by staff “reflects our commitment to making a positive difference in the island community.”
Morel echoed that sentiment, saying: “Deloitte and its employees have been incredibly supportive of our goal to ensure Jersey’s schoolchildren have access to trees and green space. We’re also grateful for Deloitte’s wider support, from sponsoring Run for the Trees and providing volunteers on the day to the regular contributions of employees who have made a huge difference in helping us progress our ongoing woodland management projects.”
Why It Matters for Jersey
For an island of Jersey’s size, green space is not an abstract luxury. With development pressure a constant feature of island life, initiatives that bring trees and outdoor learning into school grounds offer children a genuine connection to the natural environment that might otherwise be squeezed out. The programme also speaks to a broader question about how the private sector can step in to enrich community life in ways that do not depend on government budgets or bureaucratic timelines.
Corporate social responsibility can sometimes feel like little more than a branding exercise, but the combination of financial commitment, staff volunteering and event sponsorship here suggests something more substantive. When a firm’s own employees are marshalling routes on a Saturday morning and lacing up for a 12 km trail through the arboretum, it is a reasonable sign that the partnership means something beyond the press release.
Source: Channel Eye
