Trees

Service Standards for Arboricultural Services

Public safety and trees

We ensure public safety by placing all council owned trees on to inspection regimes. Cyclical Inspections are carried out as follows:

Highway trees - Annually
Housing amenity green trees - 6 Year
Park Trees - Bi annually
Cemetery trees - Bi annually
Primary schools - Annually as requested
Secondary schools - Annually
Country park woodland - Bi annually

We also offer an ad hoc inspection service for any council department wishing to have trees inspected.

We offer a list of recommended tree contractors to private residents and businesses. We also monitor the list to ensure arborists are reputable and appropriately insured.

Planned work schedules

We include highway trees on a 5 year cyclical pruning regime for non-pollarded trees and 3 years for Pollarded trees. We will also ensure that low branches are removed to aid safe passage for footpath users. The trees are subject to an annual maintenance regime, which involves removing basal and low growth.

Amenity Green Trees are included on a 6 year cyclical pruning regime for non-pollarded trees.

The remaining tree stock is not subject to rigid planned works, however any maintenance arising from the public safety inspections is commissioned and planned throughout the year.

All tree maintenance is carried out in accordance with BS 3998: 1989, British Standard Recommendations for Tree Work.

Tree protection

We act to protect existing trees by use of Tree Preservation Orders. Our Development Control section handles administrative procedures associated with Tree Preservation Orders and tree protection.

Tree planting

We aim to increase tree cover within the borough by planting a minimum of 150 heavy standard trees annually. These trees are sited in suitable areas to replace felled or vandalised ones. New sites are also sourced to improve the area and raise pride within the borough.

Council tenancy and trees

Our terms of tenancy state that tenants are responsible for tree maintenance, as they would be with grass or hedge maintenance. We do however, in conjunction with the estate office offer a free ad hoc inspection service when requested by tenants.

Ad hoc inspections currently take approximately 2 weeks to complete. An estimate will be provided for non-essential works (trees not dead, dying, dangerous or potential to cause damage), for the housing offices to consider.

Tenants are not allowed to remove any trees within the garden without written permission from the housing estate officer.

Seasonal problems

We will not generally carry out pruning works in relation to light obstruction. There is currently no 'legal right' to light where trees are concerned.

We do not consider pruning works or tree removal for minor nuisances such as sticky sap (honeydew), bird's droppings, leaf fall and the dropping of fruit or flowers.

Our street cleansing section routinely sweep and clean the streets to prevent falling leaves and fruit from causing too much of a problem.

We do not prune trees to specifically improve reception. Satellite television receivers should be sited more prudently when trees are present.

We do not prune trees on request, as this would cause problems funding the cyclical programmes. Extreme cases are considered and trees will still be inspected in response to a nuisance enquiry.

Contact

Paul Clark

Arboricultural Manager

4th Floor

Maritime House

1 Linton Road

Barking

IG11 8HG

Tel: 020 8227 3556

Fax: 020 8227 3129

Email: paul.clark@lbbd.gov.uk|