Council trees in conservation area?

[GliderSS]

Do councils have to serve notice to themselves to carry out tree work in a conservation area?

 

Lets say a large tree in the rear garden of a council house. The Housing Dept fell the tree. Should they have given notice to the Planning Dept.

[treequip]

Yes...

[AA Teccie (Paul)]

Do councils have to serve notice to themselves to carry out tree work in a conservation area?

 

Lets say a large tree in the rear garden of a council house. The Housing Dept fell the tree. Should they have given notice to the Planning Dept.

 

Nope, not generally, I think the 1999 Regs. changed this...so only if TPO'd.

 

Trees in conservation areas – exceptions

15.—(1) Section 211(a) (preservation of trees in conservation areas) shall not apply to—

(a) the cutting down, topping, lopping or uprooting of a tree—

 

(iii) by, or on behalf of, a local planning authority;

 

Cheers..

Paul

[treequip]

Nope, not generally, I think the 1999 Regs. changed this...so only if TPO'd.

 

Trees in conservation areas – exceptions

15.—(1) Section 211(a) (preservation of trees in conservation areas) shall not apply to—

(a) the cutting down, topping, lopping or uprooting of a tree—

 

(iii) by, or on behalf of, a local planning authority;

 

Cheers..

Paul

 

 

But the housing office isn't the planning office

[daltontrees]

But the housing office isn't the planning office

 

That's right, it isn't. And in some areas the LPA is not the Council. Housing should have notified Planning internally. And in theory waited 6 weeks.

 

The key is this. Conservation of trees is a planning matter, if a planning dept authorises or sanctions removal, the legislation clearly intends to avoid the farce of it notifying itself. But if another operational dept does it without any planning context, it is as much a breach of conservation as if you or I did it. No excuse.

[daltontrees]

This question seems to have been partly answered in a recent case McLellan v London Borough of Lambeth. A non-Planning committee of the Council authorised removal without internal consultation and the Court said it was wriong to do so. The Council must start again.