Tree Safety and Management Policy
Clerk: Mrs Sarah Rimell
Address: Illogan Parish Council Community Office, Trevelyan Road, Illogan, TR16 4RG
Telephone: 01209 711433
Email: enquiries@illoganparishcouncil.gov.uk
Adopted: 22.01.25
Minute Number: GR25/01/25.2
The main areas of trees that are the responsibility of Illogan Parish Council are Manningham Wood and Illogan Park. This policy will cover all areas that contain trees for which the Council is responsible.
Manningham Wood is bordered by Robartes Terrace to one side, with residential dwellings on two sides and farmland on the remaining side.
Manningham Wood is leased by Illogan Parish Council from two landowners. As lessees it is Illogan Parish Council’s responsibility to reasonably protect people and property. Advice and guidance will be sought from experienced and competent contractors on the inspection and management of the trees.
Illogan Park is located between Paynters Lane and Trevelyan Road. The Council own the Park.
There is public access to Manningham Wood and Illogan Park all the time. There are designated paths through the wood which are regularly used by parents and children on their way to and from Illogan School. Manningham Wood and Illogan Park are regularly used by dog walkers and leisure walkers. Illogan Parish Council’s contractor is in the wood and park at least once a week completing various tasks including litter picking, maintenance. Other contractors empty the bins, maintain the benches and complete tree works when required. There are benches and information signs that form part of a nature trail and carvings located around the wood.
Illogan Parish Council will manage the risks from trees in a balanced way to maximise the benefits from trees whilst taking reasonable precautions to protect the safety of people and property. It will achieve this by adopting procedures for the inspection, management and maintenance of trees proportionate to the risks identified. Resources will be identified to manage the risks in a prioritised way whilst seeking to maintain or enhance the overall asset value.
Zoning by Level of Risk
The highest risk areas are adjacent to formal public paths; adjacent to the highway, adjacent to neighbouring properties and structures; near seating and information boards.
The lowest risk areas are in the middle and on the fringes of the woodland that are infrequently accessed by people and where falling trees or parts of trees will not interfere with the high-risk areas.
Inspection Regime
There will be a detailed inspection completed every 15 months, to allow the trees to be inspected during the different seasons.
The inspection will be completed by a competent person with the appropriate level of training.
Detailed Inspections
The Council will commission a tree safety and management survey to be completed by a suitably qualified person every 15 months to allow the trees to be inspected in the different seasons.
The person completing the full tree surveys will be trained to a minimum of Level 3 arboricultural qualification with at least two years practical experience of tree management and surveying.
The details of the inspections and the significant defects identified will be recorded along with recommendations for further action.
Remedial Works
The Clerk has delegated powers to instruct a contractor to complete remedial works to trees that are dangerous or high risk.
Quotes and tenders will be obtained in line with the Council’s Financial Regulations for all other tree works required.
Bat Features, Inspections, and Investigations
This clause ensures the protection of bats, their habitats, and adherence to biodiversity commitments and legal requirements.
1. Protection of Bat Features
Trees identified as hosting features suitable for bats, such as cavities, cracks, splits, loose bark, or dense ivy, shall be safeguarded to ensure the conservation of bat populations, in accordance with relevant wildlife protection legislation.
2. Pre-Inspection Requirements
Prior to any tree maintenance, removal, or other operations, a qualified ecologist or bat specialist must conduct a bat roost potential, BRP, assessment to identify any signs of current or historic bat activity or potential roosting features.
3. Investigation Protocol
If a tree is confirmed or suspected to host bat roosts, further investigations, such as dusk/dawn surveys or endoscopic inspections, must be undertaken by licensed bat professionals. No work may proceed until these investigations are complete, and appropriate permissions or mitigation measures are in place.
4. Legal Compliance
Operations impacting trees with confirmed bat roosts must comply with all relevant laws, including obtaining a bat mitigation license if necessary. Any evidence of disturbance or harm to bats or their roosts must be reported immediately to the relevant regulatory authority.
5. Mitigation and Preservation Measures
Where possible, work on trees with bat features should be avoided during key activity periods for bats, such as maternity, May to August, or hibernation, November to March. If removal is unavoidable, artificial roosts, e.g., bat boxes, must be provided as compensatory measures.
6. Training and Awareness
Contractors involved in tree work must receive training to recognise bat features, understand legislative obligations, and follow reporting protocols.
Managing Risk
Illogan Parish Council recognises its duty under the Health and Safety At Work Act 1974 and otherwise under the law to protect its employees and members of the public, so far as is reasonably practicable, from danger arising from trees on its premises for which Illogan Parish Council has a duty of care.
Trees form a dynamic biological resource subject to the vagaries of pests and diseases, extremes of weather and the influence of human activities. Furthermore, as trees grow and mature, they may develop dead wood, cavities or other potential defects such as is a natural part of the aging process.
Where a tree’s condition has some weakness that renders it significantly likely to fail, it becomes a ‘hazard’. Where there is both a hazard and a target, i.e., people or property, that may be damaged by failure of a tree or part of a tree, then there is a quantifiable risk that requires assessment and management.
Risk assessment of trees is implemented through regular inspections, undertaken by competent people as part of a prioritised survey programme, linked to timely actioning of appropriate remedial tree work.
Records
Records, including maps, provide the basis for safety management reviews and, in the extremely rare event of an accident, can support evidence of reasonable tree management. It is not necessary to record every tree inspected. However, records of trees presenting a serious risk and requiring treatment are useful, as is a record of how they have been treated.
Illogan Parish Council will keep records of when inspections are carried out, who has completed the inspection, the recommendations for work to trees and any actions taken and when tree work has been carried out.
Trees Within Falling Distance of the Road
During the annual tree inspections, the person completing the inspection will walk along the pavement to inspect the trees adjacent to the road.
An appropriate person will also inspect the trees after strong winds, heavy rainfall, and storms and in response to any concerns reported by members of the public, councillors, contractors or employees.
Methods of Reporting and How the Council Will Deal with Reports
Concerns regarding Manningham Wood or any other trees can be telephoned, emailed or reported to the Council Office by members of the public, councillors, contractors. Once a report is received regarding trees a site visit and inspection of the tree(s) in question will be arranged by a competent person and a record of the findings will be kept in the council office. If there are any defects or concerns a suitably qualified arboriculturist will assess the tree and provide a written report as to its condition and any remedial works required. The inspection will provide one of the following three outcomes:
- The tree(s) has no observed significant defects and therefore requires no further action.
- The tree(s) requires a more detailed inspection, or the inspector needs further advice or clarification from a suitably qualified arboriculturist. The tree will be prioritised as being low, medium or high risk.
- The work is an emergency. In emergency situations the Clerk will instruct a suitably qualified contractor to complete the work required and make the tree(s) safe.
Extract from HSE Guidance
Trees in high use zones are typically inspected once a year. It might not be practical or necessary to record every individual tree. Maps of groups of trees inspected may be helpful. However, you might need to record an individual inspection if a particular tree presents a high risk. For example, if you decide to retain a tree with structural faults in a high use zone it would need an individual record. This could include the risk control measures that you have taken, and would most certainly include regular, ongoing monitoring.
Zones of medium use will have fewer visitors and are likely to be inspected less frequently, maybe every three to five years.
Low use zones typically have restricted access or few visitors. They may be remote or well away from paths. These zones may have no formal inspection procedure.
Review
| Review Date | Reviewed By | Amendments | Minute No. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 28.01.26 | Governance Review Committee |
|
GR26/01/20.2 |