For the first time since the mid-1990s, new tree planting in the UK reached 20,700 hectares in the planting year to 31 March 2024 (Figure 5) – with a year-on-year increase of 59%. During the previous four years, planting of new trees was comparatively steady, with an average of 13,500 hectares planted per year.

Performance against new planting targets in 2023/24 improved in Scotland and England. However, performance in Northern Ireland stalled – and in Wales, there was a significant downturn (Figure 6).

Planting in Scotland and England drove the overall UK performance, with year-on-year increases in new planting of 84% and 45% respectively. However, revised tree planting figures for England were published in the September 2024 release of the Forestry Commission’s headline Key Performance Indicators, and show an additional 945 hectares of new planting, bringing the total area of new planting for England to 5,500 hectares. This increases the year-on-year change for England to 76% and the overall increase in planting for the UK to 67%.

Although the proposal to set aside 10% of agricultural land in Wales for tree cover was axed at the end of 2024, the backlash and rise in anti-tree planting sentiment led to a 46% reduction in the new planting area year-on-year in Wales. Northern Ireland saw a 5% reduction in the new planting area.

Moving targets

The formation of the Tree Planting Taskforce (TPTF) in the second half of 2024 had a significant impact on targets for tree planting. The aim is to increase woodland cover to 16.5% of the UK land area by 2050 which will see a new tree planting target of nearly 0.6 million hectares over 25 years – or 22,527 hectares per annum, an almost 25% decrease from the previous target of 30,000 hectares per annum. However, a reduction in land availability and diminishing engagement due to increasing bureaucracy means it is unlikely we will see annual growth in the planting figures achieved. Specifically, productive woodland planting is under threat, with many new plantations failing to deliver optimised timber forests due to unclear objectives and overregulation reducing net plantable areas.

Carbon update

The September 2024 Forestry Statistics report comments on the reduction in carbon sequestration capacity across the national forest stock, which is predicted to continue through to the 2040s. This is caused by large areas of the UK’s woodlands being harvested as they reach commercial maturity – and is compounded by the annual shortfall of new planting since the mid-1990s, resulting in an unbalanced age distribution of trees.

The Woodland Carbon Code (WCC), at first glance, shows strong progress with a 12% rise in the number of projects on the registry – providing increases in land area of 16% and projected sequestration rising by 18% to 26.9 million tCO₂e from 2023 to 2024. In contrast, when looking at year-on-year changes in the number of validated projects, there is only a 2% increase in projects with a 3% increase in validated project sequestration. As of 31 March 2024, only 6% of the total number of registered projects have been validated, forecasting delivery of just under 2.1 million tCO₂e. Concerns remain over the pace at which projects are being registered, but is this an issue of capacity within the system or are a large number of projects failing validation?

There also continues to be a concern around how funding sources for woodland creation can negatively impact applications for WCC registration, as schemes can potentially fail the additionality test due to the positive funding profile. This may not prevent the woodland from being planted – but would result in those carbon credits not being registered and therefore not available to trade through the scheme.

CASE STUDY

Growing environmental, social and governance goals through woodland creation

Harworth Group PLC is a land and property regeneration company based in the UK. Its aim is to create long-term social and economic value by acquiring large, complex and often former industrial sites to establish sustainable residential, industrial and logistics developments.

As part of a wider woodland creation approach, incorporating the planting of 260,000 trees by the end of 2025, Harworth recently planted over 108,000 trees on its Chevington North site in Northumberland. The aim is to transform a large area of low-quality arable land with heavy, silty clay soils into a thriving woodland ecosystem.

This new woodland is designed to sequester carbon dioxide and expected to offset 2,176 tCO₂e by 2040 with a lifetime sequestration target of around 22,000 tCO₂e. This strategic planting will contribute to Harworth’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) targets as well as forming an integral part of Harworth meeting its net zero carbon pathway commitments by 2030.

Site design and species selection

Harworth was keen to get a balance between native species to benefit the local environment, carbon sequestration and suitability to the site’s heavy clay soils. In addition to native species, tree selection focused on species known for their high carbon sequestration rates – with conifers including Norway spruce, Scots pine, western hemlock, grand fir and redwood as well as broadleaf oak, sycamore and birch.

The native planting to the western side features an oak and birch planting mix, linking to existing woodland. Riparian-style planting with wider spacing was planted next to a stream – while the eastern half, with better highway access for commercial woodland management, hosts mixed conifers. The centre of the site blends conifer and broadleaf species, with pine and oak to the north.

Social engagement and environmental aims

In total, 108,831 trees were planted – with community planting events held to engage local residents in the woodland’s design and management. A total of 5.5km of public access routes were established through the woodland, linking to existing footpaths and local roads. These routes are signposted, with information boards to highlight environmental features and works within the woodland. The design made use of an old railway line, serving as a key access route.

To promote and protect biodiversity, key operations included grass and wildflower seeding to reduce soil erosion and mounding to improve drainage and root development. Block planting with deer and rabbit fencing to protect young trees was used to minimise the need for plastic tree guards.

Within the structure of an old military pillbox, an active barn owl nesting site was protected from disturbance with fencing and information signs.

Funding and carbon offset

The project secured grant funding which allowed it to be cost-neutral during the establishment phase. Much of this funding has come from the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) which also allows schemes to claim for maintenance payments for a period of 10 years. A decision was made to claim reduced maintenance payments in order to meet the Woodland Carbon Code (WCC) additionality requirements. These are currently calculated using a rigid set of costs and assumptions comparing the long-term financial value against that of the existing agricultural land use. The drawback is that if initial grant funding is too high, it can cause the scheme not to meet the criteria and therefore be ineligible for carbon credits.

_{Read the articles within The Forestry Market – 2025 below.}