Free tool · no sign-up Conservation areas from planning.data.gov.uk · Open Government Licence
Is my tree protected?
Enter your postcode and we'll tell you whether you're in a conservation area, then send you straight to your council's Tree Preservation Order map.
This is indicative only, not legal verification. A council map can be out of date, and a tree preservation order can sit on one specific tree. We check it properly and handle any Section 211 notice or TPO application for you, at no charge.
Request a quoteTwo ways a tree can be protected.
A Tree Preservation Order (TPO)
An order the council puts on a specific tree, group of trees or woodland because it has public amenity value. It makes it an offence to cut down, top, lop, uproot or damage that tree without the council's consent. Any species can be TPO'd. You apply for consent (there's no fee), and the council usually grants it with conditions. Unauthorised work carries an unlimited fine, per tree.
A conservation area
If your tree is inside a designated conservation area, it's protected automatically once it's over 75mm (about 3 inches) in diameter, measured 1.5 metres up the trunk. You give the council six weeks' written notice (a Section 211 notice) before any work, so they can decide whether to make it a full TPO. No fee, but you can't just start.
Either way, the work itself is usually fine once it's done properly and on the record. We file the notice or the application, wait the clock out, and work to whatever conditions the council attaches. There's a fuller walk-through in our guide to TPOs and Section 211 notices, a council-by-council version for Wealden, Rother, Hastings and Ashford, and more on how we handle protected tree work. If what's really worrying you is how close the tree sits to the house, our tree distance checker answers that one.
Protected tree questions
How do I check if my tree has a Tree Preservation Order?
TPOs are held tree-by-tree on your local council's own map, so the definitive check is the council's tree preservation order map (the checker above sends you straight to the right one for your postcode). Or send us the address and we'll check it for you before we quote.
What does it mean if my tree is in a conservation area?
Inside a designated conservation area, any tree over 75mm in diameter (about 3 inches), measured 1.5 metres up the trunk, is automatically protected. You have to give the council six weeks' written notice, a Section 211 notice, before any work starts. There's no fee, but you can't just begin. We file the notice for you.
Can I prune or cut down a protected tree?
Usually yes, once it's done properly and on the record. For a TPO you apply to the council for consent; for a conservation-area tree you file a Section 211 notice. The council normally agrees sensible work, often with conditions. We handle the application or the notice and work to whatever conditions they attach.
What happens if I cut a protected tree without permission?
It's a criminal offence. Unauthorised work on a TPO'd tree carries an unlimited fine, charged per tree, and you can be ordered to plant a replacement. It's not worth the risk when the permission is free and usually granted. We make sure the paperwork is in before a saw goes near the tree.
Do you handle the council paperwork?
Yes, at no charge. We check the protection status, file the Section 211 notice or the TPO application, wait the statutory period out, and carry out the work to the council's conditions. You don't chase any of it.
Got a protected tree that needs work?
Send us the address and what you're thinking. We'll check the protection status, file any paperwork, and do the job to the council's conditions. No charge for the visit or the paperwork.