National Tree Safety Group Guidance Launched

After extensive research, consultation and planning, the National Tree Safety Group (NTSG) delivers its guidance on common sense management for tree safety. This guidance has been produced over a period of five years following the commissioning of new research into trees, their benefits, people’s attitudes to risk, extensive consultation on early drafts and considerable effort by the NTSG Drafting Group in drawing together all the various stakeholder views, concerns and priorities expressed by the full NTSG membership.

The NTSG is a broad partnership of government, the private sector and civil society working together effectively to a collective goal. Founder member The Arboricultural Association recognises how important it is to have a balanced and proportionate approach to tree safety management given the impact members’ decisions have on trees – and the implications on them as arboriculturists in an increasingly risk-averse society.

The guidance is quite simply an easy to use practical management tool. It helps all those responsible for trees – from owners and managers of large tracts of land through to those with responsibility for single trees – who wish to be reassured that they are fulfilling their duty of care to occupiers, visitors and passersby alike. It provides common-sense, clear and unambiguous practical advice in a way that is easy to read and can be interpreted to suit most, if not all, locations where trees grow – locations ranging from trees in forests, woodlands and rural areas through institutional and commercial land to parks, gardens and domestic properties in urban areas.

The guidance is available at three levels, each available as a free download with hard copy also available, as follows:

1. Common sense risk management of trees (The main guidance document – free to download or £19.99 plus P&P for hard copies)
2. A Landowner Summary (for estates and smallholdings – free to download or P&P only for hard copies)
3. Managing Trees for Safety (For the domestic tree owner – free download or P&P only for hard copies).

These can be downloaded from the National Tree Safety Group at www.ntsg.org.uk/ (Click on 'What's new at Forestry Commission Publications' and scroll down).