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Friends of the Earth Progress Report, September 2025

Friends of the Earth's September 2025 Progress Report covers a year of climate and nature campaigning from the courtroom to parliament and out on the streets. Its petitions were backed by more than 145,000 people calling for a new UK law on corporate environmental and human rights harms, nearly 115,000 people urging a planning system that safeguards nature, and over 22,000 calling on the Chancellor to put climate before corporate profit. In July it secured a major victory in its Article 8 Aarhus case on the public's right to help shape environmental law. Its Postcode Gardeners programme with The Co-operative Bank has revitalised 500 green spaces and engaged over 3,000 people.

Report snapshot
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About

Friends of the Earth campaigns for climate action, nature protection and environmental justice in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, through legal action, policy work, research and a network of local action groups.

Key Metrics

145,000 people signed the petition handed in at Downing Street calling for a new UK Business, Human Rights and Environment Act
500 green spaces revitalised through Postcode Gardeners with The Co-operative Bank
19,000 pollinator-friendly plants planted by Postcode Gardeners projects

Key Outcomes

  • Secured a major victory in its Article 8 Aarhus Convention case, defending the public's right to help shape new laws that impact the environment
  • After the Downing Street petition, the UK government signalled plans to tackle environmental and human rights abuses in supply chains, including a review of responsible business conduct
  • The Postcode Gardeners scheme engaged over 3,000 people to reconnect with nature and each other across 17 active projects

Geography

England and Wales

Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
5,999 active volunteers contributed 776,242 hours in 2025/26
Key Metric 2
137 winter maintenance projects across 45 canals; 109 lock gates replaced
Key Metric 3
101,640 children participated in Explorers/STEM outdoor learning, including 67,896 water-safety participants
Over 80% of the network kept fully open despite drought.
Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
The Eco-Schools programme reached over 1.4 million pupils, with 2,162 schools awarded the Eco-Schools Green Flag in 2024/25
Key Metric 2
326,000 volunteers pledged to the Great British Spring Clean, picking up 425,626 bags of rubbish, supported by 288 local authorities and parish councils
Key Metric 3
2,227 Green Flag Awards given to parks and green spaces in the UK; 151 beaches given a Blue Flag and/or Seaside Award
98.3% of educators felt the Eco-Schools programme significantly supports young people's development of 'green skills'
Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
First known breeding success of spoonbills in the Norfolk Broads in around 400 years, recorded at Hickling Broads and Marshes
Key Metric 2
Over 60 nature reserves managed across Norfolk, with land owned or managed for wildlife exceeding 5,000 hectares
Key Metric 3
1,500 volunteers helped protect wildlife across the county during the year
New urban nature reserve co-designed with the local community, expanding accessible green space in Norfolk
Impact Snapshot
Key Metric 1
61,819 native oysters deployed across UK restoration projects in 2024/25
Key Metric 2
15,064 people participated in the Beachwatch beach clean programme, submitting 1,256 litter surveys — the highest in the programme's 31-year history
Key Metric 3
17,613 young people engaged through in-person or online youth programme sessions
£11.5 billion Ofwat investment package secured for storm overflow cuts in England and Wales following sustained MCS advocacy