Hi

Where thinking of buying a house with some land, we have seen an ideal one which has approx 1/2 acre to the side of the house which is a bot of a wooded area.  Does anyone know if you can take the wood area away to make a field or are they laws etc effecting the trees etc.  Been trying for 8 days to speak to someone at the local council but there is only a duty planning officer available to talk to on phone for 2 hours each day and its always engaged!

I was thinking of taking them down and grassing the area?

M

There are very strict rules about 'change of use' for land. For example, if you buy an agricultural field at the end of your garden it's very unlikely you'll be allowed to extend your garden onto it. Agricultural land must generally stay that way. Also, with the current emphasis on climate change and global warming, deforestation of any scale is frowned upon, with people being encouraged to plant trees and not fell them! Trees and woodland are often protected by tree preservation orders. The local planning department should be able to send you a copy of the regulations.

Is it only when a tree has a presivation order on them work cant be carried out?

Our last place had over an acre of woodland and it turned into a muddy nightmare during the winter ! the dogs just ran round and round the trees churning it all up :rolleyes: - we wanted to clear it and put it down to grass and there was no legal reason why we could not - it was just the costs and disruption  involved that put us off - in the end we moved - partly to get the right kind of land for running the dogs ( now have a paddock) but mostly because we lived in the middle of the village and it was just getting too built up for our taste !.

Yvonne

My son's studying tree surgery and arboriculture so I'll ask him when I next speak to him. :)

Why would you want to take the wooded area away for grass?   

The woodland is probably supporting all sorts of animal & insect life.

We've got a small garden and the people before bought a few feet extra off the council to extend it.  When I say a few feet I mean only about 6-8 feet.  There was one Sycamore tree on the extra piece of land and it is in our deeds that we are not allowed to cut it down.

I've spoken to my son who says you'd have to contact the council. With the recent publication of the Stern Report and the impact on the environment of the removal of habitat, councils are apparently getting very strict about the felling of trees, especially if they're not going to be replaced.