‘And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good.’ Genesis Doing its bit to care for the planet has seen St Mary’s Church, Hale, achieve a special Earth-friendly accolade.

The Bronze Eco Church Award from A Rocha UK, is in recognition of its good environmental practices and its efforts in addressing the climate crisis.

The aim of the Rocha scheme is to equip churches and individuals to consider their impact on the environment and to help restore biodiversity at a local level.

St Mary’s, one of six churches in the Avon Valley Churches team, is located on the western edge of the New Forest.

To achieve the Bronze, the congregation was asked to look at the environmental impact of the church and its activities by evaluating the services, buildings and land management, community and global engagement and personal lifestyles. Among the initiatives that got them recognised were ‘Snowdrop Services’ with an ecological focus, reduced energy and water consumption, a wildlife survey recording more than 100 species, a monthly Fairtrade market stall and supporting Christian Aid in lobbying leaders to care for creation.

The St Mary’s Hale team has been dedicated to environmental causes for many years and believes that securing the Bronze Award in 2021, despite pandemic challenges, shows that even in difficult times, we can all make environmentally conscious decisions. During lockdown, services went online, reusable facemasks were made and sold in aid of Ringwood Foodbank and actions, from weekly prayers to the ‘Hale’s Angels’ choir car-share scheme, encouraged consideration of the environment.

Bethan Davies, Eco Church Champion for St Mary’s Hale, said, “The Eco Church Award scheme brings together groups from across the community and channels concern for our planet into positive action. “I’d especially like to thank our congregation for their dedication, and the energies of many partners, such as Woodgreen Community Shop, Hale Food Market, Hale House and Hampshire Fungus Recording Group. They all have a stake in this award. “Next we will be going for gold!”