Hambledon Primary School partners with RingGo in carbon offsetting initiative

Hambledon Primary School partnered with RingGo, the UK’s leading phone parking solution, in planting 170 trees: in the process helping the company offset its annual carbon emissions. The initiative is part of RingGo’s mission to help towns and cities become cleaner, healthier, more liveable places.   

The event, coordinated by Carbon Footprint, involved 105 students who took part planting the donated trees, with a focus on creating a new green space for the students. The children worked alongside RingGo’s Head of Professional Services, David Mitchell and Winchester City Council’s Councillor Martin Tod, Cabinet Member for Service Quality and Transformation, planting the 170 trees that will now give students an opportunity to watch, grow and help manage the planted area; showcasing sustainability and bio-diversity.  

RingGo provides a pay by phone service for Winchester’s Park & Ride sites. The council is encouraging an increase in tree planting as part of its ambitious targets to be a carbon neutral organisation by 2024 and a carbon neutral district by 2030. 

Throughout the three hour event, the students were able to learn about deforestation and sustainability, engage in team bonding tasks and receive bespoke certificates to mark their contribution towards carbon offsetting in their local community.     

The core driving aim, of making cities cleaner, healthier and more liveable places is supported by many of the company’s developed solutions, including emissions based parking, which aims to reward motorists driving low emission vehicles – such as electric or hybrids – with lower parking tariffs. The aim of this is to incentivise motorists to save money by driving cleaner vehicles and reduce their impact on the environment simultaneously.   

David Mitchell, Head of Professional Services, RingGo, said: “Today’s event marked a significant step forward in making our local communities more aware of the small yet impactful ways we can all work towards a cleaner and healthier planet. Working with the students of Hambledon Primary School to plant the 170 trees was a fun and special way to engage and educate the younger generation about topics such as sustainability and environmental footprint, something that sits at the core of RingGo’s social values.”   

Mr Paul Davies, Headteacher at Hambledon Primary said “This has been a fantastic opportunity for the children to make an active contribution toward their learning environment and the sustainability of our beautiful rural village of Hambledon. Thank you to RingGo for supplying the trees and arranging the event.”  

Martin Tod, Winchester City Councillor, said: “We want to plant more trees across Winchester district as part of our commitment to tackle the climate emergency and really welcome today’s contribution by RingGo. It’s great to help Hambledon school’s pupils plant these beautiful new trees and to see their passion for nurturing the environment now and in the future.”