Yew hedge with tpo

[Wantmymoneyback]

Hello everyone. Hoping for some advice.

 

The front of my property is lined with yew trees (hedge)with tpo's. we had the tree officer round as we wished to remove them. We were told in no uncertain terms that under no circumstances would this be approved.

 

We applied to have 2 stems removed and the lower foilage removed so as to increase security(no one could hide and jump out from behind hedge)

 

This was approved and the works carried out.

 

A few months later we applied for a front extension which was refused as we had not included a tree report. We went to appeal and used their arb company who advised that as the council had agreed to us lowering foliage(hedge only)-EXACT WORDS AND BRACKETS USED-that the council agreed it was a hedge and therefore could not have a tpo therefore we can remove the hedge if we so wish

 

Does this sound correct to you?

 

Hope this makes sense. If you require any further info please ask.

 

Many thanks

[sloth]

Sounds about right, a hedge cannot be the subject of a tree preservation order - but of course, a row of trees can. Whether you have a hedge or a row of yew trees is the key question here...

 

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Arbtalk mobile app

[treequip]

Hello everyone. Hoping for some advice.

 

The front of my property is lined with yew trees (hedge)with tpo's. we had the tree officer round as we wished to remove them. We were told in no uncertain terms that under no circumstances would this be approved.

 

We applied to have 2 stems removed and the lower foilage removed so as to increase security(no one could hide and jump out from behind hedge)

 

This was approved and the works carried out.

 

A few months later we applied for a front extension which was refused as we had not included a tree report. We went to appeal and used their arb company who advised that as the council had agreed to us lowering foliage(hedge only)-EXACT WORDS AND BRACKETS USED-that the council agreed it was a hedge and therefore could not have a tpo therefore we can remove the hedge if we so wish

 

Does this sound correct to you?

 

Hope this makes sense. If you require any further info please ask.

 

Many thanks

 

The TPO, if one exists is a matter of public record. Some (more enlightened) councils have them online, if your doesn't you can visit the LA offices and see all TPOs they have.

 

Have a look at the consent they sent you for a TPO number

[Kev Stephenson]

If the tree officer has been out and specifically told you that you can't remove it then trying to find a loop hole and doing it without permission/notification will either land you in deep water or make everything you apply for with the council in the future an absolute PITA.

 

Generally hedges are exempt but hedge row trees can be protected. If it was me I would be writing to the tree officer stating that you wish to remove a hedge (not row of trees) and to your knowledge hedges are exempt from protection. State you give him/her a set number of days to respond in writing with the details of the piece of legislation which protects this specific hedge otherwise it will be getting removed. You may find the trees when planted were the subject of a blanket TPO but have been trimmed to a hedge since the TPO was served. It will probably be a paperwork shuffling exercise but it needs doing.

[Kev Stephenson]

For reference

 

 

hedge

[hej] Show IPA

 

noun

1.

a row of bushes or small trees planted close together, especially when forming a fence or boundary; hedgerow: small fields separated by hedges.

 

2.

any barrier or boundary:

[oslac]

Hi

 

Can we see a photo please.

[Wantmymoneyback]

If the tree officer has been out and specifically told you that you can't remove it then trying to find a loop hole and doing it without permission/notification will either land you in deep water or make everything you apply for with the council in the future an absolute PITA.

 

Generally hedges are exempt but hedge row trees can be protected. If it was me I would be writing to the tree officer stating that you wish to remove a hedge (not row of trees) and to your knowledge hedges are exempt from protection. State you give him/her a set number of days to respond in writing with the details of the piece of legislation which protects this specific hedge otherwise it will be getting removed. You may find the trees when planted were the subject of a blanket TPO but have been trimmed to a hedge since the TPO was served. It will probably be a paperwork shuffling exercise but it needs doing.

 

I believe that you are correct regarding the trees being trimmed to a bush. Does that help or hinder?

 

I shall try and upload a photo tomorrow.

 

Many thanks for all your responses.

[Chris at eden]

Photos would be helpful. Look at it objectively and think how you would describe it. The wording in the guidance to describe a tree is 'anything that you would normally consider to be a tree'. If it looks like a row of small trees they can probably get away with it. If its a neatly trimmed hedge with right angle corners then probably not.

[Chris at eden]

With regards to the other points you made. You need a tree survey and impact assessment irrespective of whether the trees are tpo'd. Trees are a material consideration and councils have a duty to protect them in the face of development.

 

With regard to the planning app there are five elements you will need to provide information on as standard. Access, layout, scale, appearance, and landscape. The tree survey ties in with the latter so there shouldn't be any getting away with it.

 

I wouldn't rely on the council using the word hedge in a consent as a suitable defence if you fell without permission. For one that wording probably came directly from the application and they just repeat it in the consent. TPO contravention is a criminal offence so you get a criminal record as well as a fine worst case scenario. Being in the criminal arena the magistrate would also look at mitigating and aggravating factors. The word hedge may well be a mitigating factor but the fact that the tree officer has been out and told you it is protected will be an aggravating factor and will most likely out weigh the word hedge.

 

Your best option is to apply to fell as you do not believe it is worthy of a tpo due to it being a hedge if in fact it is. It may be worth getting something in writing from a tree professional to support the app. If it is refused you can appeal to the planning inspectorate. You would then get a definitive answer.

[daltontrees]

Sounds about right, a hedge cannot be the subject of a tree preservation order - but of course, a row of trees can. Whether you have a hedge or a row of yew trees is the key question here...

 

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Arbtalk mobile app

 

Where is this stated in law or guidance?

 

Also, as someone's dictionary definition of a hedge shows, a hedge is a row of trees. Trees can be TPO'd.

 

Also (again) if it is TPO'd it is protected, rightly or wrongly for whatever historic reasons. If there was an application for planning permission that necessitated its removal and it's removal was not supported by tree report and compelling arguments, that is a straight refusal and should be a refusal at appeal too. I am basing this on the principles supported in a recent similar appeal case in Scotland (the subject of an article, hopefully, in the Scottish Branch section of the next Arb Mag).

 

The advice to "State you give him/her a set number of days to respond in writing with the details of the piece of legislation which protects this specific hedge otherwise it will be getting removed" is in my opinion fundamentally flawed, notwithstanding the frustrations that everyone might be feeling. There is a right way to go about this, and that aint it. But you haven't given enough info to say yet what the right way is.

 

Anyway, I am genuinely interested to hear where this 'hedges cannot be TPOd' rule comes from. The Govvernment guidance on high hedges, for example, refers to 'trees that form a hedge' which are TPO'd.