Tree report

[Pbtaylor2014]

Hi guys did some tpo work earlier in the year and found 2 trees 1 lime and 1 sycamore with a meter cavity at the base so done the other trees aroun 6 in total explain to the customer and phoned the tree official and he said he be along to look and then get back to the home owners he hasn't be so home owners phone and then they get a email saying that thay need a tree report from a qualified abourcultorist which i am this is a first report for me and what to do and bst way to explain and once they receive they will then come and look at the cavity and report any help would be appreciated

[Chris at eden]

Hi guys did some tpo work earlier in the year and found 2 trees 1 lime and 1 sycamore with a meter cavity at the base so done the other trees aroun 6 in total explain to the customer and phoned the tree official and he said he be along to look and then get back to the home owners he hasn't be so home owners phone and then they get a email saying that thay need a tree report from a qualified abourcultorist which i am this is a first report for me and what to do and bst way to explain and once they receive they will then come and look at the cavity and report any help would be appreciated

 

If you are looking at working on the TPO tree for reasons which relate to risk management then you are required to provide written evidence from a professional.

 

If you are unsure then you may be best to sub it out in the first instance as that would give you an idea of what others are doing. I do loads of sub work for tree surgeons round my way, seems pretty common practice.

 

What is your current level of certification and insurance out of interest? If you are doing tree reports you will need professional indemnity and for that the insurance company will need to check your certification.

[Pbtaylor2014]

Hi insurance cover one million but not as you describe i think i might see if i can find a local lad with the right quals and who has done it before thanks for the above

[Chris at eden]

Hi insurance cover one million but not as you describe i think i might see if i can find a local lad with the right quals and who has done it before thanks for the above

 

No problem. Where are you based?

[Pbtaylor2014]

Im based in southpirt abd the job is in Liverpool

[detritus21]

I'm in Wigan and do tree reports of the type you would be after cover all the north west and Liverpool is only 30 mins away. Before anyone asks I'm qualified to do them and have professional indemnity. PM me if you are interested.

[fagus]

I am not in the grammar police; however to give the right impression tree reports require correct spelling and punctuation. A suitable App can help. Just saying.

[ScottF]

Hi Chris. When you say

 

"If you are looking at working on the TPO tree for reasons which relate to risk management then you are required to provide written evidence from a professional."

 

do you mean the guidance in "Protected Trees: A guide to preservation procedures"? I don't find the guidance in there that prescriptive, and it's certainly not interpreted that way where I live. Can "professional" mean an experienced contractor or must it be a "consultant"?

 

Would be interested to hear how other LA's are interpreting this guidance.

[ReubenHayes]

Hi Chris. When you say

 

"If you are looking at working on the TPO tree for reasons which relate to risk management then you are required to provide written evidence from a professional."

 

do you mean the guidance in "Protected Trees: A guide to preservation procedures"? I don't find the guidance in there that prescriptive, and it's certainly not interpreted that way where I live. Can "professional" mean an experienced contractor or must it be a "consultant"?

 

Would be interested to hear how other LA's are interpreting this guidance.

 

Have you looked at this site?

 

http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/1app/guidance/guidance_note-works_to_trees.pdf

 

Condition of tree(s)

The presence and impact of pests, diseases or fungi that require work to be carried out to the tree(s) should be described in written evidence or diagnostic information from an arboriculturist or other appropriate expert. Arboricultural evidence must be provided to support applications that suggest the tree has defects that may be of concern to the current or future safe retention of the tree or parts of the tree.

 

The guide does state an arboriculturist expert. I would suggest to say someone who has a qualification in what they have been asked to report on. The reason for qualifications is that if it goes wrong and you are stood in court you have the training and qualifications to back up what you are talking about. In respect of Contractors, they tend to be more hands on and worked up the operational side. So it would depend if you have been out and gained extra Arb qualifications.

[Chris at eden]

To add to what Reuben said the one app form states professional advice although there does seem to be different versions of the form floating around. If you think about what is required for professional membership of the AA that would be a minimum of a level 5 qualification. CAS is level 4 and I think ICF is 6, although there is some flexibility with the last one. That kind of backs up the professional bit. NTSG also makes reference to detailed investigations being carried out by those with an L3 qualification.

 

The problem with the term arboriculturist is that it is not a protected designation such as architect or dentist unless you are going for Chartered Arboriculturist which is issued by the ICF. Again for chartered arb you are required to have a suitable level of qualification and experience.

 

When I was doing my L6 we were taught that professions are represented by seats of learning in higher education so L4 and up. Which again pushes it toward the qualification route. The basic idea was that tree consultants were professionals, while tree surgeons were skilled trades. This will probably upset a few people but its not intended to, I see nowt wrong with being a skilled trade. You wouldn't hire a tree consultant to cut a tree down as they probably don't have the skills although some may. I worked as a tree surgeon for years but I couldn't do it commercially anymore. Too old and the fitness isn't there anymore.

 

That said I know a few tree surgeons with L3 and L4 qualifications and I see no problem with them writing tree reports. I think they would be on slightly dodgy ground though writing them based purely on experience and chainsaw tickets. As Reuben said if you ended up in court. Remember you would be trying to convince the judge you know more than the other bloke and if he has a degree you are on an uphill battle before you even start as the judge will consider that as would the planning inspector if it was a TPO appeal.

 

Of course this all falls down when you consider that there is a chap on the AA reg consultant list who has an ND Arb (L3) and professional membership of both the AA and ICF so no idea how that works. I assume he based his entry on experience and maybe a higher qualification in a related discipline. Not sure. Its not a straight forward issue.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Cheers