Native Woodland
Inventory record of the tree species present
Native Woodland is a habitat record, not a designation. It flags land recorded as woodland made up of species native to Britain: oak, ash, birch, hazel and rowan. The Forestry Commission publishes the record in the National Forest Inventory, a survey that covers Great Britain only.
What This Means
The record puts no restriction on the house itself. Living here, decorating and routine garden upkeep need no woodland consent. What it touches is the trees. Felling or heavy pruning may need a licence, and clearing woodland almost always does. If you build near the trees, the planning authority will usually ask for an arboricultural report. It may also want an ecological survey for bats. This does not normally affect mortgage approval, buildings insurance or resale.
Practical Advice
- Have your conveyancer confirm where the recorded woodland sits relative to the house, garden and any land included in the sale.
- Ask the local planning authority whether a tree preservation order or conservation area notice also covers these trees.
- Apply to the Forestry Commission, Natural Resources Wales or Scottish Forestry before felling more than five cubic metres in any calendar quarter.
- Ask an arboriculturist for a tree survey before you design an extension near the canopy or roots.
Key Points
- Native woodland describes the species mix. Ancient woodland means land wooded continuously since about 1600, or about 1750 in Scotland, and carries far stronger planning protection.
- A stand of oak and birch behind the garden is recorded as native woodland; the Sitka spruce plantation next to it is not.
Additional Information
The inventory is open public mapping, not a local land charge, so a standard conveyancing search may not return it. In Northern Ireland, felling is licensed by the Forest Service under the Forestry Act (Northern Ireland) 2010.