Protected Trees
We can protect trees. We can do this under the Town and Country
Planning Act 1990 (as amended) by making a Tree Preservation Order
(TPO). The information in the pages below will tell you what you
should do if you would like a visually important tree to be
preserved. It will also tell you what you can do if a tree you may
wish to do works to or have removed is subject to a TPO.
A new edition of the leaflet Protected Trees - A Guide to Tree
Preservation Procedures is now available from Communities and Local
Goverment to download. Please see Protected Tree Guide.1454Kb
PDF.
Trees in Conservation Areas
Older historic parts of the Borough, such as Ashford town centre
and the historic core of rural villages, are designated
Conservation Areas under the Town and Country Planning Act. There
are now over 40 Conservation Areas in the Borough as a whole.
Conservation Area status protects most trees within them not
already covered by a
TPO
. With certain exceptions
anyone intending to carry out work to or fell a non
TPO
tree in a Conservation Area
must give us a minimum of 6 weeks written notice before carrying
out such works.
The main purpose of this is to enable us to consider whether the
tree(s) should be subject to a
TPO
. The penalties for carrying
out such works to Conservation Area trees without giving 6 weeks
notice can be as much as a £20,000 per tree.
Other Tree Protection
Sometimes in granting planning permission for
development ourselves or the Secretary of State on appeal
may have imposed conditions which control how trees or hedges are
to be treated. Copies of any planning consent or appeal decision
are available on our website if after 2003. Copies of older
planning consents or appeal decisions can be obtained by
request by quoting the application number to planning.enquiries@shford.gov.uk
or 01233 330264.
Tree Preservation Orders
A Tree Preservation Order can be applied to any species of tree.
Rare or unusual trees that have particular historic interest are
more likely to be granted with an order. Trees in hedgerows can be
included but not hedges, bushes or shrubs themselves. What's more
TPO
's are not
normally placed on fruit trees cultivated for fruit production or
on trees within areas we control such as on highways or in
parks.
We currently have over 600 Tree Preservation Orders protecting
thousands of trees. It is a criminal offence to cut down, top, lop,
uproot, wilfully damage or destroy any tree covered by a
TPO
unless we have
specifically permitted this work and the fines can be as much as
£20,000 per tree.
We often make a
TPO
when we are considering planning applications for development. This
is because development sites may contain trees that make an
important visual contribution to the public amenity of the area.
However,we have to be satisfied about the health of the tree.
If you wish to make an application for works to trees subject to
a tree preservation order and/or trees in a conservation area, this
is available on our application forms and guidance webpage.
You can search Applications for Tree Works online, use our
TPO search facility or
view TPOs and
Conservation areas with our online mapping facility.
View the
Communities and Local Government website for more
information.
To make an enquiry about trees protected by a Preservation Order
or within a Conservation Area email Tree
Protection.
This webpage was updated on
1/7/2010