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Groundwork Five Counties Impact Report 2025/26

Groundwork Five Counties' Impact Report 2025/26, published in June 2026, sets out the regional charity's work across Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland supporting people, places and the planet - from energy advice and retrofit to green spaces, employment support and community projects.

Report snapshot
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About

Groundwork Five Counties is a regional community-based charity with a green heart, working across Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland to create real impact for local communities and the environment.

Key Metrics

People supported 5,102 people supported across all Groundwork Five Counties projects in 2025/26.

Key Outcomes

  • Communities across the five counties are greener, warmer and more resilient, with households saving money on energy, people moving into work or education, and local green spaces restored for people and wildlife.

Geography

East Midlands

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