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  • Managing Tree Related Risk
  • Tree Surveys
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  • Trees and the Built Environment
  • Tree Protection
  • Woodland Management
  • Wildlife Management
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For further information, please either contact us or call on 01608 648 657

Quick links to other services
Managing Tree Related Risk - Tree hazard surveys
Tree Surveys - Tree Identification / Tree Pests & Diseases
Trees & Development - The impact of trees on buildings (BS5837)
Trees & the Built Environment - Subsidence and the impact of trees on built structures
Woodland Management - Planning and Management Guidance
Wildlife Management - Bats, Birds and Habitats

Tree Protection

Trees stand as an integral part of the landscape and provide context and longevity to it. Alongside towns and villages with special architectural or historical interest, trees are sufficiently large features of the landscape, that their presence can preserve and enhance it.

• Conservations Areas - Protection is granted to trees that are located within conservation areas, and any one who wishes to undertake any works to such a tree must notify the council with 6 weeks advance notice.

• Exemptions are granted to this requirement for trees that are dead, dying or dangerous, or that are under 75mm stem diameter at 1.5m from ground level.
• All planning authorities will have a Local Plan that states how to manage the relationship between trees and buildings (click here for a link to our development page). In most cases, this plan will seek to protect the conservation area by maintaining the tree cover, and development proposals that reduce this cover may not be accepted. It is therefore vitally important to know whether your tree(s) are located within a conservation area in order to know what works may or may not be acceptable to the council.

• Tree Preservations Order - A second tier of protection that is granted to trees is that of a Tree Preservation Order (TPO).

• This is a special level of protection for trees that councils are duty bound to protect. A TPO can be applied to an individual tree, a group of trees, or a woodland, and is usually applied for the amenity value that the tree(s) bring to an area.
• A TPO can be applied to a tree that is located inside or outside of a conservation area. Where a TPO has been applied, permission will need to be obtained from the council for any works, whether pruning or felling, to that tree or group of trees.
• When a TPO is applied to a tree, the council has an obligation to notify the owner and any others who may be affected of the order. Upon receipt of that notice, an objection can be raised to the TPO for the council to consider, before it is able to confirm the TPO. Once the order has been confirmed, permission will be required for any future works.
• In some circumstances, permission may be refused, and in such circumstances, an appeal may be lodged against this decision.

At Tree Frontiers, we can assist you with the necessary advice for how to notify the council of your intention to undertake works to trees in conservation areas, or help you with the application to carry out works to a protected tree. We can liaise with the planning authority on your behalf to help you achieve you goals. Where required, we can assist with the lodging of objections to a proposed TPO, or with appeals where permission to carry out works has been unreasonably withheld.