Priory Direct, a sustainable packaging firm based in Aylesford, Kent, has moved its carbon offsetting scheme from South America to Kent to enable greater staff involvement and tangible impact.
In addition, the company has chosen to reallocate part of its charitable support from a national charity in favour of a Kent-based children’s charity to allow for closer collaboration.
The move is part of Priory Direct’s renewed focus on volunteering, with the firm’s managing director Josh Pitman having founded and hosted the first Kent CSR Connect event in November 2024. The event brought together more than 30 charities and businesses from across Kent to spur greater collaboration, with future events in the pipeline.
As part of its wider journey towards total carbon neutrality, Priory Direct has supported a reputable Brazilian carbon offsetting scheme for several years.
Now, the firm – which supplies planet-friendly packaging to more than 21,000 businesses –has chosen to instead support Dartford-based tree planting initiative Time 4 Trees, which is just 20 miles from the firm’s base.
In March 2025, the entire firm planted 200 trees on the repurposed household landfill site spanning 100 acres. The regenerated site can never be built on but has permission for 40,000 trees to be planted, making it a valuable greenspace to encourage wildlife and foster biodiversity and which can be viewed from the Queen Elizabeth Bridge.
To further maximise its impact locally, Priory Direct has begun a new partnership with Dandelion Time, a charity situated just six miles from the Aylesford-based firm. The charity provides early support to children who have suffered from traumatic experiences in a farm setting, providing a therapeutic space.
Josh Pitman, managing director of Priory Direct, which is a certified B Corp business, said: “As a firm, we want to reduce our impact on the environment as much as possible and give back. We have always done this by supporting reputable schemes and charities across the country and the globe.
“However, this year we decided to bring these activities back to our home turf so that we can see the difference we’re making but, most importantly, so we can become more proactively involved in the initiatives and ultimately give more of our time and resources. This is much more beneficial for our partner organisations.”
Kate Bourne, director of fundraising at Dandelion Time, added: “Demand for Dandelion Time’s therapeutic support for vulnerable local families continues to rise so we couldn’t be more delighted to be collaborating with Priory Direct.
“We’ve already had several discussions to flesh out ideas on what we’d like to do within this new partnership. Both sides are full of great ideas so I’m excited to see these come to fruition.”
Josh concluded: “Supporting local schemes and charities means our people can be part of tangible change. For example, our whole team will be able to see the trees they planted grow whenever they cross Queen Elizabeth Bridge for years to come.
“We are excited to have many more plans in the pipeline for local volunteering and community initiatives.”
