Checking tree rules with UK councils: TPOs, conservation areas and felling licences

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. It does not tell anyone whether a tree can be cut. The national picture, with the headline England rules, is in before you cut: tree protection orders, bylaws and permits. This page goes one level down. It reads the regulations of each nation, puts the felling licence rules side by side, and then lists council by council what each tree page offers and says.

Three kinds of rule meet on a UK tree. A Tree Preservation Order (TPO) is made by the local planning authority for named trees. A conservation area gives a looser protection to trees that have no Order. A felling licence is a separate system run by the forestry body of each nation. Each has its own office, so a tree can sit under more than one at once.

England

The rules are the Town and Country Planning (Tree Preservation) (England) Regulations 2012, which the legislation page says come into force on 6 April 2012. Regulation 13 bars the listed acts on an Order tree "except with the written consent of the authority and, where such consent is given subject to conditions, in accordance with those conditions." Read them on the legislation.gov.uk page for the 2012 regulations.

Time periods in the England rules

Making an Order. The notice sent out must give a date for objections that is "at least 28 days after the date of the notice". The government guidance says an authority can only confirm an Order "within a 6 month period beginning with the date on which the Order was made".
Applications. The guidance says that if the authority has not decided an application for consent "within 8 weeks from the day it is received", the applicant may appeal on grounds of non-determination. Under the regulations, an appeal against a decision goes in "within the period of 28 days from the receipt of notification of the authority's decision or such longer period as the Secretary of State may allow".
Conservation areas. Notice under section 211 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 is 6 weeks before the work. The guidance adds that the work may go ahead before the end of the 6 weeks if the authority gives consent.

Conservation-area exceptions by size

Regulation 15 lists work that the section 211 notice rule does not apply to. Two of the entries are by size: "the cutting down or uprooting" of "a tree whose diameter does not exceed 75 millimetres", and the same work "where carried out for the sole purpose of improving the growth of other trees, of a tree whose diameter does not exceed 100 millimetres". Topping or lopping is excepted for "a tree whose diameter does not exceed 75 millimetres". The regulation says diameter is measured "over the bark of the tree, at a point 1.5 metres above the natural ground level". For a tree with more than one stem at that point, the regulation treats it as over the limit if any one stem is over it.

Scotland

The rules are the Town and Country Planning (Tree Preservation Order and Trees in Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Regulations 2010, which "come into force on 1st February 2011". Two points from the legislation.gov.uk page for the 2010 regulations:

"A tree preservation order must define the position of the trees, groups of trees, or woodlands to which it relates and for that purpose is to include a map."
The notice of a new Order must state "the date by which any representation must be made to the planning authority (being a date not earlier than 28 days after the date on which the notice is given)".

Regulation 8 lists what section 172 of the 1997 Act does not apply to in conservation areas. It includes "the cutting down, uprooting, topping or lopping of a tree having a diameter not exceeding 75 millimetres" and "the cutting down or uprooting in a woodland of a tree having a diameter not exceeding 100 millimetres where this is done to improve the growth of other trees". Diameter is "measured over the bark, at a point 1.5 metres above ground level". The City of Edinburgh Council says a new Order "takes effect immediately and lasts for six months". Aberdeen's planning guidance, in the table below, gives a notice period of 6 weeks for conservation-area work.

Wales

The Welsh Government's guidance page, first published on 15 November 2013, is protected trees: guidance on tree preservation orders. It carries a leaflet, "Protected trees: a guide to tree preservation procedures", which says it is "for guidance only and is not a statement of the law". The leaflet says:

Local planning authorities have powers to protect trees by making tree preservation orders, "although Natural Resources Wales is responsible for the control of felling of woodland trees".
In a conservation area, for trees not protected by an order, "you must give your local planning authority six weeks' notice in writing". Trees "less than 7.5 centimetres in diameter (measured 1.5 metres above the ground) or 10 centimetres in diameter if thinning to help the growth of other trees" are listed as outside that rule.
"Except in an emergency you are advised to give your local planning authority at least five days' notice before you cut down a protected tree which is dying, dead or dangerous."
A person could be "fined up to £20,000 if convicted in the magistrates' court" for deliberately destroying a tree or damaging it in a manner likely to destroy it, and up to £2,500 for other offences.
An appeal against a refusal or a condition goes to the Welsh Ministers in writing "within 28 days of receiving the decision".

Northern Ireland

In Northern Ireland the councils make TPOs. The nidirect page on tree preservation says "Local councils make and enforce Tree Preservation Orders (TPOs)", and "If a tree is protected by a TPO, you need the council's consent before you can fell or prune the tree." It also says "Anyone proposing to carry out work on trees in a conservation area must serve the council six weeks' notice of the intended works."

The Planning (Trees) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015 say they "shall come into operation on 1st April 2015". On the legislation.gov.uk copy of the 2015 regulations, regulation 9 lists conservation-area work outside section 127 of the Planning Act (Northern Ireland) 2011: cutting down or uprooting "a tree whose diameter does not exceed 75 millimetres", the same for "a tree whose diameter does not exceed 100 millimetres" where done "for the sole purpose of improving the growth of other trees", and topping or lopping of a tree of 75 millimetres or less. The council notice for a new Order must give a date "at least 28 days after the date of the notice" for objections.

Dead and dangerous trees, as each source words it

Several pages treat dead and dangerous trees as an exception that still comes with a notice. The wording differs by place, so it is quoted here.

Source	What it says	Time period
England, 2012 regulations, regulation 14	Excepts a tree "which is dead", and work "urgently necessary to remove an immediate risk of serious harm, or to such other extent as agreed in writing by the authority prior to the works being undertaken"	Written notice "at least five working days" before, or "as soon as practicable after the works become necessary" for urgent harm
England, government guidance	"If the danger is not immediate the tree does not come within the meaning of the exception." Also: consent is needed for work on diseased or dying trees "unless some other exemption applies"	Dead tree: 5 working days written notice
Scotland, 2010 regulations, regulation 8	Excepts a tree where "it is urgently necessary in the interests of safety"	No period in the regulation text
Northern Ireland, 2015 regulations, Schedule 3 of the prescribed form of Order	Consent not required for "a tree which is dead or has become dangerous"	No period in the text
Wales, Welsh Government leaflet	Advises notice for a protected tree "which is dying, dead or dangerous"	At least five days, except in an emergency

Felling licences

A felling licence is a different permission from a TPO. Each nation names its own office, and the exceptions differ. This table gives each source's thresholds as written.

Nation and office	Thresholds and exceptions as written
England: Forestry Commission	Thresholds: "an over bark diameter of 8cm or more, or in the case of coppice or underwood, 15cm or more, measured at 1.3m above ground level". Over those diameters, a licence is needed "to fell more than 5 cubic metres" in a calendar quarter Exceptions: Up to 2 of the 5 cubic metres may be sold per quarter. The page lists danger or nuisance, lopping and topping, and "other permissions already in place". Licences are free
Scotland: Scottish Forestry	Thresholds: Exempt: trees "of ten centimetres or less" at 1.3 metres, and "up to 5 cubic metres of timber within any set calendar quarter" Exceptions: The 5 cubic metre exemption does not apply in native broadleaved woodland of 0.1 to 0.5 hectares or in Caledonian Pinewood Inventory sites. Dead trees: "trees that are starting to die or are blown over are not exempt"
Wales: Natural Resources Wales	Thresholds: Not needed "to fell less than five cubic metres in a calendar quarter". Diameters at 1.3 metres: 8 cm or less, 10 cm or less for thinning, 15 cm or less for coppice Exceptions: Gardens, orchards, churchyards, public open space; lopping and topping. For a dangerous tree "There must be a real and immediate danger, rather than a perceived danger"
Northern Ireland: the Department named in the Forestry Act (Northern Ireland) 2010	Thresholds: Section 15: no felling of trees "growing on land of 0.2 hectares or more in area" without a licence. Outside it: diameter "not exceeding 8 centimetres", 15 centimetres for coppice or underwood; up to 5 cubic metres in any quarter by the occupier Exceptions: "the felling of trees for the prevention of danger or the prevention or abatement of a nuisance"; a tree that needs TPO consent; a tree in a conservation area

The pages for each nation are the England felling licence page, the Scottish Forestry page, the Natural Resources Wales page and section 15 of the Northern Ireland Act. The England page says "All parties are responsible to check permissions before work starts. This includes landowners, tenants, agents acting on behalf of owners, timber merchants and contractors." Scottish Forestry says "Felling trees without a felling direction or permission is an offence." Natural Resources Wales says "If convicted of illegal tree felling, we can issue an unlimited fine." Wales also says a licence is needed "for blown trees that are still standing, albeit at an angle".

Council by council: what each tree page says

The first tables cover 20 places, and a further table gives one fact from each of 25 London boroughs that have a page of their own. Cells give what the page offers (a map, a register, a request form), what it says is protected or needs a permit, and the office named. Where a page prints a size, it is given with its unit as written. The legal document, not a map, is the record: Newcastle's page says its map data "is not the legal document and is supplied for information purposes only", and Edinburgh's page says the TPO areas on its map "are indicative only".

England: cities

Council	What its page offers and says, and who decides
Birmingham	TPO locations on its online mapping system; a copy of a TPO can be requested and "may take up to 10 working days". Consent applications cover protected trees and conservation-area trees, including trees that encroach over a boundary. Decision "within 6 to 8 weeks". After wind damage to a protected tree, work "must be the minimum needed" Office and page: Tree officer, planning. See the Birmingham find-out page, the Birmingham apply page and the Birmingham damaged trees page
Leeds	Online TPO map. Conservation area: "trunks smaller than 7.5cm in diameter" at 1.5m are listed as exceptions, and permission "at least 6 weeks in advance". Dead or dangerous protected trees: written notice "at least 5 working days" before emergency works Office and page: Planning Services. See the Leeds overview page
Sheffield	Map of conservation areas and TPOs, with a note that new TPOs may not yet be on it. Notice of 6 weeks for trunks "75mm in diameter or over" at 1.5m. Dead protected trees: "at least 5 working days prior written notice". A copy of a TPO plan carries a £15 charge Office and page: Council planning team. See the Sheffield tree works page, the Sheffield conservation notice page, the Sheffield dead tree page and the Sheffield TPO application page
Manchester	The page gives no online TPO map and directs enquiries about whether a tree is protected to the planning team. Conservation areas: six weeks' notice "unless they form a hazard to public safety or are already covered by a TPO". "There is no fee involved." Office and page: Planning team. See the Manchester TPO page
Liverpool	A map of TPOs, from which a TPO can be downloaded free. "If a tree is dead or dangerous, you don't need to apply for consent, but you'll still need to contact us to prove that the work falls within an exemption." Conservation areas: "six weeks' notice" Office and page: Council planning team. See the Liverpool TPO page
Bristol	Online map with TPO layers; conservation areas are under "Historic information". Conservation-area works to a tree "of a diameter not more than 75mm at 1.5 metres" are listed without notice, or 100mm for thinning. Dead or dangerous: "at least five working days' notice". Fine up to £20,000 per tree. Decision within eight weeks for a TPO, six weeks for a conservation-area notice Office and page: Development Management. See the Bristol TPO page, the Bristol conservation area page, the Bristol dead tree notice page and the Bristol application page
Leicester	Over 450 TPOs. Interactive map for TPOs and conservation areas. Conservation-area trees "if their trunk is more than 75mm in diameter (measured 1.5m above ground)". "There is no fee to apply" Office and page: Planning Service, Planning Officer (Trees). See the Leicester protecting trees page
Newcastle upon Tyne	Register of protected trees searchable by address or reference, and an interactive map of TPOs and conservation-area trees, which one part of the page says is being upgraded and not available. "All trees with a trunk diameter of 75mm (about 3 inches) or more are protected in a Conservation Area". Decision within eight weeks, six for a conservation-area tree Office and page: Council planning team. See the Newcastle tree preservation page
Bradford	Online TPO map with a how-to PDF. Conservation area trunks "more than 7.5cm wide, measured 1.5 metres above the ground" (the page also writes "over 75 mm"). Aims to respond within 8 weeks to applications and 6 weeks to notices Office and page: Enforcement and Trees Team. See the Bradford protected trees page and the Bradford applications page
Coventry	The page says Coventry "has made over 500 Tree Preservation Orders", gives counts by type and a postal address for its officer, and shows no map. Fines "up to £20,000" Office and page: Tree Preservation Officer. See the Coventry TPO page
Oxford	Over 250 TPOs and 18 conservation areas, with a TPO and conservation-area map. "All trees in conservation areas are protected if they have a stem diameter of 75 millimetres, measured at 1.5 metres above ground level." Applications "typically take 8 weeks" Office and page: Council planning team. See the Oxford TPO page and the Oxford conservation area page
Cambridge	Greater Cambridge Shared Planning runs the page. A map with a TPO layer. "All trees in conservation areas are protected, by general conservation area controls." Notices can go by email instead of the APP1 form Office and page: Greater Cambridge Shared Planning. See the Cambridge check page, the Cambridge conservation notice page and the Cambridge permission page

England: London boroughs

Council	What its page offers and says, and who decides
Westminster	Over 650 TPOs. Six weeks' notice in writing (a section 211 notice) for conservation-area work. The tree map the page links shows trees the council manages; the page gives a contact address for the privately owned trees team to ask about a TPO Office and page: Privately owned trees team. See the Westminster trees page
Hackney	An online map for checking whether a tree is in a conservation area or has a TPO. Conservation area notice: "6 weeks" for work, with no notice for single trees under 7.5 cm stem width at 1.5 metres or trees in a group under 10 cm. Urgent work on a protected tree needs a "5-day notice" by email with photographs, a map and replacement details. A fine "up to £20,000" for unauthorised work Office and page: Planning, Hackney Service Centre. See the Hackney trees page
Camden	The council keeps a record of all TPOs; the page names its Tree and Landscape Officer for checks and shows no map. Conservation areas: "7.5cm or more" at 1.5m, and a notice for "a trunk diameter of more than 75mm". Planning decisions for the Oxford Street and West End area are made by the Oxford Street Development Corporation Office and page: Tree and Landscape Officer. See the Camden TPO page
Croydon	No online map on the page; it asks for tree details by email. "If a tree is dead you don't need formal permission", but "if the tree is dying formal consent is required". Five days' notice for dead or dangerous trees. Fines up to £20,000 for destroying and £2,500 for pruning Office and page: Development management. See the Croydon TPO page
Wandsworth	A TPO and listed building map and a conservation-area view. "five working days notice under the dead and dangerous exemption". Conservation-area notice "6 weeks before any work is to begin". A TPO request gets a full response "within 20 working days" Office and page: Trees team. See the Wandsworth TPO page

London boroughs with their own page

Each borough below has a page of its own with the full reading of its tree pages.

Borough	One fact from its page
Barking and Dagenham	An application for work on a protected tree said to be involved in damage to buildings or structures must be supported by technical evidence. The page gives a £20,000 maximum for unauthorised work, with an unlimited fine on conviction in the Crown Court in serious cases. See the Barking and Dagenham page
Bexley	Calls its orders Tree Protection Orders and carries a register of them with the statuses CONF, PROV and LAPSED. It states a fine of up to £20,000 for each tree affected. See the Bexley page
Brent	Fines of up to £20,000 for destroying a protected tree and up to £2,500 for pruning one without written consent. The page says a retrospective application cannot be made. See the Brent page
Bromley	Over 2000 TPOs. A dead tree needs written notification at least 5 working days before work. See the Bromley page
Ealing	A new order gives 30 days to object. The decision notice on an application is issued within eight weeks. See the Ealing page
Greenwich	Formal notice goes to the council at least six weeks before work on a conservation area tree. The council says it has six weeks to object and that a formal objection can only be made by making an order. See the Greenwich page
Hammersmith and Fulham	Copies of TPOs cost £28 each, paid by card over the phone. Six weeks' written notice for a conservation area tree with a trunk diameter of 75 mm or more. See the Hammersmith and Fulham page
Haringey	The page says protected trees on boundaries may be registered under a neighbouring address. It offers an interactive map and a search of the public register under the Tree Preservation Orders category. See the Haringey page
Harrow	The page states a response within six weeks for TPO works and eight weeks for tree works in conservation areas. A copy of an order costs £40.00. See the Harrow page
Havering	Except in an emergency, at least five days notice for a dead or dangerous protected tree. Consent is not needed where a tree is directly in the way of development for which detailed planning permission has been granted. See the Havering page
Hillingdon	Consents are valid for 2 years from the date of consent unless the conditions say otherwise. A refusal can be appealed in writing to the planning inspectorate within 28 days of the decision letter. See the Hillingdon page
Hounslow	Up to £20,000 for destroying a protected tree and up to £2,500 for unauthorised work that does not destroy it. A replacement tree is required in the cases the page lists. See the Hounslow page
Islington	The council says it acknowledges an application within 14 days and replies within eight weeks. Unauthorised work is reported on 020 7527 2000. See the Islington page
Kensington and Chelsea	Instead of a map, orders are listed as PDF files by the first letter of the street name, in four groups. The page states a fine of up to £20,000 for damaging a protected tree on conviction in a magistrates' court. See the Kensington and Chelsea page
Kingston upon Thames	A conservation area tree is protected at 75 millimetres in diameter at 1.5 metres. The page names laurel, rhododendron, palm, elderberry, wisteria and buddleia as plants that cannot be protected. See the Kingston upon Thames page
Lambeth	Around 5,000 trees are protected by TPOs. The page states there is no fee to submit an application. See the Lambeth page
Lewisham	A decision aim of eight weeks for a TPO tree and six weeks for a conservation area notice. The council does not respond to requests to check whether a tree is in a conservation area, because the information is online. See the Lewisham page
Merton	Over 600 tree preservation orders. A 6 week period for conservation area trees and 8 weeks for trees under a TPO or planning conditions. See the Merton page
Newham	Over 400 trees with orders, listed in a spreadsheet. It states a fine of £20,000 for destroying a tree with an order and up to £2,500 for damaging one without destroying it. See the Newham page
Redbridge	Applications are free. For applications on order trees from December 1, 2025 that include felling, the council requires replacement details. See the Redbridge page
Richmond upon Thames	A copy of an order whose number is known costs £40.50 including postage. Applications take up to 8 weeks to process. See the Richmond upon Thames page
Southwark	Conservation area sizes of 7.5 cm for a standalone tree and 10 cm in a group, at 1.5 m. Permission from the Dulwich Estate may be needed in the postcodes SE19, SE21, SE22, SE24 and SE26. See the Southwark page
Sutton	A paid status check is £20 per site. The page says a request for a new TPO could take up to 12 weeks. See the Sutton page
Tower Hamlets	The list of trees under orders can be looked at by appointment at the council's offices in Clove Crescent, not as a download. See the Tower Hamlets page
Waltham Forest	The page gives section 198 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 as the source of the power to make an order. For a dead or dangerous protected tree, at least five days' notice with photographic evidence. See the Waltham Forest page

Scotland and Northern Ireland

Council	What its page offers and says, and who decides
Edinburgh	An interactive map: green for conservation areas, purple for TPOs. "It is an offence to carry out work to a protected tree without permission." A list of new Orders with closing dates for representations Office and page: City of Edinburgh Council planning. See the Edinburgh protected trees page, the Edinburgh tree work page and the Edinburgh new Orders page
Aberdeen	A planning guidance document, not a map page. "All trees within conservation areas (75mm diameter or greater measured at 1.5 meters above ground level)" are protected, with notice in writing "6 weeks prior" Office and page: Local planning authority. See the Aberdeen trees and woodlands guidance
Belfast	A guide, published June 2021, linking a map of all TPOs and conservation areas. Over 160 TPOs and 13 conservation areas. In a conservation area the council "will have six weeks to consider the proposal". Fines on summary conviction "up to £100,000" Office and page: Planning Office, Belfast City Council. See the Belfast guide to protected trees

What to take from it

The same words carry different periods and sizes in different places. Periods of 5 working days, five days, 6 weeks and 8 weeks all appear above, and conservation-area sizes are written as 75 mm, 7.5cm, 100 mm and 10 centimetres.
Several councils name the planning team, a tree officer or a trees team as the office that decides. The forestry body of the nation decides felling licences. A tree can need both.
Map pages are for finding out. Newcastle, Edinburgh and Sheffield say their maps are not the final record, and the Order or the register is the record.

For work near buildings, see trees on building sites. For birds and bats, see wildlife and the law.

Contains public sector information published on legislation.gov.uk and GOV.UK and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Words in quotation marks are taken from those pages; the rest is our own summary.