The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs is showcasing its £5.7 million investment in Northern Ireland's forests with a new campaign.

A series of five short films are being released, designed to promote forest parks across the region during the Centenary Year.

Launching the first of the short films, Environment Minister Edwin Poots said: "Many of our forest parks have been around for well over 100 years so Northern Ireland's Centenary Year is a good opportunity for us to reflect on the remarkable social and environmental value our forest parks provide to everyone in Northern Ireland.

"This series of short films highlights the significant investment and enhancement to many of our forest parks. To date, my Department has invested £5.7m through the Tackling Rural Poverty and Social Isolation (TRPSI) Programme's Forest Park Enhancement Scheme. This funding has helped to enhance and protect our forests while improved access has made them more user friendly and attractive to tourists. Building on the success of the Scheme, I have plans to support further investment of £2.2m across another 11 forest parks this year.

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"The Forest Park Enhancement Scheme is an investment in infrastructure which will help deliver my Green Growth Strategy in the years ahead by creating an opportunity for economic growth through environmental protection and enhancement."

Alongside the Forest Park Enhancement Scheme, last year saw the DAERA launch the 'Forests for the Future' campaign – which aims to plant 18million trees and create 9,000 hectares of new woodland by 2030. Under these plans, a call has been issued to eligible landowners and farmers to consider planting some trees on their land under the Forest Expansion scheme and the Small Woodland Grant scheme which are currently open.

"The pandemic has changed life for everyone and this is reflected in the significant increase in the visitor numbers to our forests parks," Minister Poots added. "Our parks contribute greatly to positive physical and mental health as well as addressing important issues such as isolation, loneliness, access and health and well-being. That is why continuing to invest in them is vital and I hope the public will enjoy our forests and parks even more as we continue to develop and work on further enhanced facilities across the forest estate in the years ahead."

The first short film is available below.