[7] In addition to covering planting costs, grants could be used for related purposes such as community involvement, site surveys and the provision of expert advice.

[2] £4m of the funding allocation was promised by the Forestry Commission[2] through 'efficiency savings and re-prioritisation',[8] while the remaining £200,000 came from the existing London Tree and Woodland Community Grant.

[9] The independently chaired Big Tree Plant Grants Panel included representatives from civil society organisations, DEFRA, and the Forestry Commission, and met each spring and summer to award funds.

[10] In advance of the main funding, Keep Britain Tidy - one of the partners supporting the initiative - had already invited applications for planting kits from schools in the Government's Eco-School programme.

[11][12] The funding arrangements, specifically the fact that the grants would normally only cover up to 75% of the cost of each scheme (although free labour could be offset against this),[14] was criticised by some as favouring better-off over deprived communities.