Page 2 | Looks like they’ve cut down trees

AllrightNowBaby · 2025-04-02T15:25:30+00:00

AIBU to pursue this issue? During the Summer I walk my dog around a nearby wood. This weekend I was shocked to see a very large area, behind two houses backing onto the wood, had been decimated of trees, After speaking to other dog walkers, someone had seen men cutting the trees during Winter and they thought it odd as obviously not council workers. The wood is looked after by the Parks and Gardens dept, so I reported it to them. They took some notes and told me they’d get back to me but haven’t done. I feel I should take this further, as it’s obviously the residents of the two houses who have wantonly destroyed 10 mature trees, leaving a very obvious and odd square of tree stumps, huge logs and huge mounds of wood chips. I think this must be criminal damage to destroy trees on land not belonging to you. I’m thinking of reporting to the Parish Council and if no joy from them, the local MP. Has anyone any other suggestions?

Theoldwrinkley · 10/04/2025 19:01

AllrightNowBaby · 10/04/2025 18:31

Update:
The Arborist from the council called me and told me that they are already aware of the trees being demolished.
They have reported the matter to the police and estimate there has been £100k of criminal damage to council property.
He told me it didn’t take a brain surgeon to know who was responsible but the police have no actual proof and on making enquiries with neighbours, apparently no one knows anything.
He says he thinks the two house might want to extend their gardens by applying to rent this now devastated land off the council..but he is going to block any applications from them if they try.
I’ve emailed a councillor who I know has strong connections to this area asking his to chase up the police and am waiting for a reply.
I’ve also got Friends of local parks onboard and hopefully they can carry this forward.

Well done you for taking notice and taking action. Round here we have the total destruction of HS2. The acres (square miles) of treeless desert is more than upsetting. I think of the migratory birds who left these shores last year, and are returning to treeless, ravaged, deserts of nothingness. And what for?
I think in general people don't realise it takes a lot of human generations to see the maturity of one tree. So sad. And of course our loss of trees is legal, so nothing we can do.

Original poster

AllrightNowBaby · 10/04/2025 18:31

Update:
The Arborist from the council called me and told me that they are already aware of the trees being demolished.
They have reported the matter to the police and estimate there has been £100k of criminal damage to council property.
He told me it didn’t take a brain surgeon to know who was responsible but the police have no actual proof and on making enquiries with neighbours, apparently no one knows anything.
He says he thinks the two house might want to extend their gardens by applying to rent this now devastated land off the council..but he is going to block any applications from them if they try.
I’ve emailed a councillor who I know has strong connections to this area asking his to chase up the police and am waiting for a reply.
I’ve also got Friends of local parks onboard and hopefully they can carry this forward.

OP posts:

Mistyglade · 02/04/2025 18:40

have you emailed your local councillors, mine always reply in good time. They’ll be able to advise better than us.

InSpainTheRain · 02/04/2025 18:20

I wouldn't be getting involved in this. Probably they were diseased (ash and horse chestnut populations have issues at the moment).

Cardhouse · 02/04/2025 18:13

There was outrage here when woods were "decimated" but it was all planned copppicing as part of the woodland management.

Report by all means and follow up a response, but I'd bet it's all above board.

NoBiscuitsLeftInMyTin · 02/04/2025 18:12

I've not seen what area you are in - but if you're in Wales then the NRW will take action - I have personal experiance with this and involved in a current investigation so have a lot of current information (if it is in Wales).

Original poster

AllrightNowBaby · 02/04/2025 18:09

Thanks for all your help, I’m going to follow up with the Parks and Gardens dept and if no joy I’ll try Parish Council and then MP.
Unless you’ve seen it as I have, you can’t really judge but it doesn’t look very professionally done and I know which tree company has the contract for the council, they wear uniforms with logo on the back.
I’ve walked this wood for over 30 years and have seen the odd old or diseased tree felled…but nothing like this.
The wood definitely belongs to the council, there is a Countryside sign at the entrance and sign’s for no horses allowed.
If for some reason the council have felled the trees all well and good but that is what I’m going to find out.

OP posts:

Yopl · 02/04/2025 17:51

You’re jumping to a lot of conclusions, follow up with the parks dept before jumping to MP and the like.

aspidernamedfluffy · 02/04/2025 17:51

Disease, storm damage, because whoever owns them wanted to, could be a number of reasons why they were chopped down.

SheridansPortSalut · 02/04/2025 17:50

You are making a lot of assumptions here based on gossip. You have no idea who cut down the trees or why.

Rather than reporting anything maybe start by asking the various depts if they cut them down

Wolfpa · 02/04/2025 17:50

It is highly unlikely that things haven’t gone through the correct channels. It is part of a tree surgeons job to check. Try and get some facts before you start blaming people.

HouseofDreams · 02/04/2025 17:46

Do you have a local Facebook group to ask?

whatever you do, don’t go accusing people of all sorts before you have all the facts.

MissMoneyFairy · 02/04/2025 17:44

Do you know for definite that the homeowners cut the trees down?

rainbowunicorn · 02/04/2025 17:43

AllrightNowBaby · 02/04/2025 17:03

Thanks for advice heldinadream, I’m absolutely fuming.
Other dog walkers I’ve mentioned it to have been pretty apathetic, some shrugging and saying that it must have put shade on their gardens.
I replied, then they shouldn’t buy a house with a wood behind, if the trees annoy them so much they can move….. but what you don’t do is cut down ten healthy trees which don’t belong to you, ruining it for wildlife and all the rest of us.

Show quote history

How do you know the trees were healthy? Are you qualified to assess this?
How do you know the men that cut down the trees weren't contracted by the council to do so? Councils don't have tree surgeons directly employed. They have contractors that bid for tenders to work for the council for a set term. You would not be able to tell most tree surgeons from any other random bloke.

TizerorFizz · 02/04/2025 17:39

@AngelsWithSilverWings It could have been part of the parcel of land bought by the council and not developed. Over the years it’s just not registered to any individual. Who normally looks after it? Has someone applied to land registry to get ownership?

Elunajeya · 02/04/2025 17:23

How is anyone going to be able to prove who has done it, if it wasn’t done officially?

countrygirl99 · 02/04/2025 17:21

I volunteer at nature reserves and we coppice and also sometimes cut down trees to vary habitat or because they are diseased. There may be very good reasons that the trees have come down. You need to find out the actual facts before you denigrate the residents.

AngelsWithSilverWings · 02/04/2025 17:19

It may not be the house owners. My friend has a long garden which backs on to woods. They have never had a fence at the back as their kids loved to explore the woods from the garden.

A few months ago they noticed someone chopping trees down and clearing the area at the end of their garden. When my friend challenged them they waved a piece of paper at her and said they owned the land.

My friends have checked the land registry and it's not registered to anyone - it's ancient woodland. They are trying to get to the bottom of what is going on and have involved the council ( their house is an ex council property) They have lived there 25 years and no one has ever claimed to own the land before.

Butterbeanbutterbo · 02/04/2025 17:16

How do you know they were residents? As pp have said, councils employ tree surgeons as contractors all the time

boilingstormyseas · 02/04/2025 17:12

Woodlands need management. It could be that there were diseased trees (eg ash) or part of the wood has been coppiced. How do you know that it’s obviously the residents of the two houses who have wantonly destroyed 10 mature trees?

TizerorFizz · 02/04/2025 17:08

If they cut them down in the winter there weren’t birds nesting. A wood will have a lot more trees. These could have been in a dangerous condition or diseased. You need to calm down a bit. 10 trees isn’t a wood!

Original poster

AllrightNowBaby · 02/04/2025 17:03

heldinadream · 02/04/2025 16:48

TPO completely irrelevant here. Not their trees to cut down. Criminal damage.
Yes please pursue it @AllrightNowBaby
Council, MP, parks and gardens dept. Keep at them. Wanton destruction of wildlife makes me - wild!

Thanks for advice heldinadream, I’m absolutely fuming.
Other dog walkers I’ve mentioned it to have been pretty apathetic, some shrugging and saying that it must have put shade on their gardens.
I replied, then they shouldn’t buy a house with a wood behind, if the trees annoy them so much they can move….. but what you don’t do is cut down ten healthy trees which don’t belong to you, ruining it for wildlife and all the rest of us.

OP posts:

TizerorFizz · 02/04/2025 17:00

They would be contractors. Councils don’t have tree surgeons. The important info is who owns the land. Was it a cash crop or ancient woodland? Woods are often used for their wood crop and then replanted. It’s not always necessarily a disaster to cut trees down as woods must regenerate. It was also in winter so that’s not illegal.

verycloakanddaggers · 02/04/2025 16:59

Ask your local councillor to find out.

FedUpandEatingChocolate · 02/04/2025 16:58

I think it's unlikely that random people came and cut down the trees, unless maybe the people living in the houses contracted them due to light blocking etc?

Could it be part of an ash dieback management? Huge swathes of woodland near me have been cut down due to this, but there's clear signage in place locally about it.