That was the Grown in Britain Week, that was!

I believe that Grown in Britain Week (GiB) came of age in 2015, with partner organisations developing their own events alongside to build a cohesive seven days of celebration, communication and connection to timber, wood products and UK forests.

I sense that the whole GiB campaign, now in its third year, has matured as a movement with more focus and clearer priorities. What has definitely changed is the deeper interest from the media, the highlight being three live slots on primetime BBC breakfast programmes with seven million viewers. Broadcasting resounded to such phrases as 'it's time to celebrate the sound of a chainsaw' and 'support our forests and timber processors by looking for the GiB logo'.

We've also had strong support from successive UK ministers and are building ever-stronger relationships in all the UK nations. Defra Secretary of State Liz Truss kicked off GiB week by visiting a big construction site featuring tonnes of homegrown softwood. She was briefed by construction giants MACE and Willmott Dixon about their hunger for GiB-licensed wood and she urged the supply chains to meet this fast-evolving demand.

I welcome this call to arms, as I sense that some processors see GiB as all about lowland hardwoods. We do aim to get these hardwood woodlands managed, but it's not the exclusive focus. We also use the tree to table story as a great carrier pigeon to connect society, clients and procurers to all UK timbers including the rather more hidden and, lets face it, less sexy brilliance of a C16 softwood joist!

Ms Truss also visited Heal's furniture store in Tottenham Court Road, London, where a GiB display of wood products 'in the making' dominated the shop floor for several weeks. The display was designed to capture the public imagination and get people to appreciate where wood comes from. The inclusion of sawn boards and a STIHL chainsaw really brought the sawmill and working forest into the high street, changing attitudes as well as giving Heal's health and safety officer some anxious moments!

The GiB Week trail also led to the Architectural Association school at Hooke Park, where masters students build fantastic large-span buildings out of whole beech trees jointed together with precision cuts made by a futuristic robotic arm. Cellulose and technology in perfect harmony to create sustainable buildings.

And further dispelling the myth that GiB is all about hardwood, GiB-licensed softwood took centre 'YouTube' stage on Wednesday as the film of the Studio Bark live build was launched in conjunction with TRADA and GiB-licence holder BSW.

The market tells us that it wants the GiB trademark of sustainable, legal and homegrown on its timber and wood products. Our next job, is to secure the support of the whole supply chain, not just because it's a good thing, but because it makes commercial sense to back Britain, get a GiB licence and feed a market that is crying out for more.