New tree chopping rules for Plymouth

City preserving green spaces

A new policy which protects council-owned trees valued by the public from being felled is being introduced in Plymouth.

It comes after a learning review into the tree felling massacre of March 2023 when more than 100 specimens were chopped down in the middle of the night in Armada Way, as part of a regeneration project.

Cllr Maddi Bridgeman (Ind, Moor View) proposed the notice of motion to Monday’s full council to introduce a fair system of assessing trees suitable for a tree preservation order (TPO).

The council accepted it with amendments put forward by Labour members. Currently trees on council land are not subject to TPOs because the authority is not seen to pose a threat to them.

But recent events have put that in doubt namely Armada Way and a planning application for homes on a council owned play space in Wilmot Gardens in the Crownhill area, where mature trees were not protected.

Under the new policy trees worthy of protection will be considered for a TPO irrespective of land ownership.

Councillors want TPOs served on trees that have “significant amenity value” and are at “imminent risk” 

And when Plymouth City Council land is being sold or has a change of use, a tree assessment will be carried out first to see if trees included meet TPO criteria.

Cllr Bridgeman said thousands of trees had been destroyed in Plymouth to make way for new development, more than 500 alone in her ward for the Forda Valley Link Road in an ancient woodland which had displaced deer all over the city.

She said the proposed Manadon Interchange would result in the loss of thousands more trees and habitats along with the compulsory purchase of homes.

Their significance was not recognised because the treatment of these trees compared to privately owned trees had meant that TPOs were “not considered necessary”.

“Trees silently sustain our lives every single day but Plymouth has a poor reputation for protecting them,” she said.

“They are more than just greenery, they are the lungs of our planet, they absorb carbon dioxide and release the oxygen we breathe. They provide shade, food, medicine, habitats for countless species and keep soil and water healthy. “

She said PCC did not protect its own trees as “it does not wish to prosecute itself for slaughtering, felling and culling its own trees.”

Councillors backed the public being allowed to apply for TPOs on council owned land and a list being published of council-owned trees worthy of protection within six months.

They said they welcomed “a level playing field” on the treatment of trees.

Cllr Sue Dann (Lab, Sutton and Mount Gould) said there would be a tree management plan which would go before scrutiny panels.

The authority has come up with a “comprehensive action plan” to improve how it delivers major projects and engages with residents following the Armada Way fiasco. 

Cllr Dann said Plymouth cared about trees and was named a ‘Tree City of the World’ in May 2025 for its efforts in planting 35,000 trees in six months, the majority to create a forest on Ministry of Defence land near Ernesettle.  

A total of 169 trees are being planted as part of the new regeneration scheme for Armada Way, replacing many that were chopped down.

Following the meeting she said: “This isn’t about words, it’s about action. From now on council-owned trees will get the same protection as any other.

“After the Armada Way learning review we promised to do better – and this is the proof we mean it.

“We’re putting the public back at the heart of tree protection.”

The learning review urged the council to improve transparency around tree management.