Tree Questions Devon Councils Get Asked regularly cover the same issues: planning permission, Tree Preservation Orders, neighbour disputes, roadside trees, wildlife and responsibility for tree safety. For Devon homeowners and landowners, knowing where you stand before carrying out work can prevent unnecessary costs, delays and legal problems.
This guide answers ten of the most common questions in straightforward terms and explains when it is worth seeking professional arboricultural advice.
Tree Questions Devon Councils Get Asked About Permission
1. Do I Need Permission to Prune or Remove My Tree?
It depends on the tree, its location and the work you intend to carry out.
You may need consent or prior notification if:
- The tree is protected by a Tree Preservation Order (TPO).
- The tree is located within a Conservation Area.
- The work involves felling volumes that require a Forestry Commission felling licence.
- Planning conditions or other site-specific restrictions apply.
For a tree protected by a TPO, you will normally need to make an application to the Local Planning Authority before pruning or felling.
Different rules apply to trees within Conservation Areas. Subject to exemptions, the Local Planning Authority generally needs six weeks’ written notice of proposed work to trees with a diameter greater than 75mm when measured at 1.5 metres above ground level (over bark).
There are exemptions to some controls, but these should not be assumed. For example, removing dead branches from a living protected tree can be exempt, while different notification requirements apply when dealing with a dead tree.
If you are unsure, checking before starting work is considerably safer than discovering afterwards that consent was required.
Tree Questions Devon Councils Get Asked About TPOs
2. How Do I Know If My Tree Has a TPO?
The relevant Local Planning Authority should hold records showing Tree Preservation Orders and designated Conservation Areas.
Depending on where you live in Devon, this could be your district council or a unitary authority such as Torbay Council or Plymouth City Council.
Many authorities provide online mapping systems where you can search by location. However, if there is any uncertainty, contact the planning authority directly before carrying out work.
A professional arboricultural consultant can also establish whether restrictions apply and help determine what permissions are required.
You can read more about professional support with protected trees through our Tree Consultancy services.
3. Who Is Responsible for a Dangerous Tree Near a Road?
Generally, the owner of the land on which the tree grows is responsible for taking reasonable steps to manage foreseeable risks associated with it.
That responsibility does not disappear because branches extend over a public road.
Highway authorities may inspect roads and identify trees on neighbouring private land that appear to require attention. Where concerns arise, the authority may contact the landowner and request an inspection or appropriate action.
This does not mean every roadside tree needs regular heavy pruning or removal. Tree risk should be managed proportionately according to the tree’s condition, its surroundings and how frequently the area is used.
Where a roadside tree presents a potential concern, a professional assessment can help establish whether intervention is actually necessary and what form it should take.
Tree Questions Devon Councils Get Asked About Neighbours
4. Can I Cut Back My Neighbour’s Tree?
In many circumstances, you can cut branches or roots that extend across the boundary into your property, but there are important restrictions.
Generally:
- Work should stop at the boundary.
- You must not enter your neighbour’s property without permission.
- You should not carry out work that leaves the tree unstable or causes unreasonable damage.
- Removed material remains the property of the tree owner and should normally be offered back to them.
Most importantly, your right to address encroaching branches or roots does not override legal tree protection.
If the tree is subject to a TPO or located within a Conservation Area, the appropriate consent or notification may still be required before work takes place on your side of the boundary.
Root pruning also counts as tree work and can have serious implications for tree stability if carried out incorrectly.
Where substantial pruning or root removal is proposed, professional advice is recommended.
5. What If My Tree Has Bats or Nesting Birds?
Tree work can be affected by wildlife legislation as well as planning law.
All wild birds, their nests and eggs receive legal protection while nests are in use or being built, with additional protections applying to certain species. Bats and their roosts are also legally protected.
Importantly, bat roost protection does not disappear simply because bats are not visibly present on the day work is planned.
Features such as:
- Cavities
- Cracks
- Loose bark
- Woodpecker holes
- Split limbs
can potentially provide roosting opportunities.
A competent contractor should remain alert to ecological constraints and stop or modify work where necessary. More complex situations may require advice from a suitably qualified ecologist and potentially the relevant licensing authority.
Government guidance on protected species and development is available from GOV.UK guidance on protected species.
More Tree Questions Devon Councils Get Asked
6. Who Clears Fallen Branches After a Storm?
There is no single answer that applies to every situation.
If branches from your tree fall within your own property, arranging clearance will normally be your responsibility.
Where a tree or branch falls onto:
- A neighbouring property
- A public road
- A pavement
- Vehicles
- Buildings
the circumstances become more complicated.
The immediate priority should be public safety. A highway authority or emergency service may take action where a fallen tree creates an immediate obstruction or danger, but this does not necessarily transfer responsibility for the tree away from its owner.
Liability for damage can depend on the circumstances, including whether the failure was reasonably foreseeable and whether the tree had been managed appropriately.
This is one reason why proportionate inspection and record keeping can be valuable, particularly for owners of larger tree populations.
7. Can the Council Force Me to Deal With a Dangerous Tree?
In certain circumstances, yes.
Local and highway authorities have statutory powers that may allow them to require action where a privately owned tree presents a relevant danger or obstruction.
For roadside trees, for example, a highway authority can take action where vegetation presents a danger to highway users.
In practice, authorities will often seek cooperation first by contacting the landowner and explaining the concern.
If you receive such correspondence, it is worth responding promptly.
Importantly, a request to address a tree does not necessarily mean it must be felled. Professional assessment may identify pruning, monitoring or another proportionate management option.
8. Will the Council Prune or Remove My Tree for Me?
Usually not.
Councils are generally responsible for trees growing on land that they own or manage. Trees growing on private property remain the responsibility of the landowner.
A council may:
- Explain whether a tree is protected.
- Process a TPO application.
- Receive a Conservation Area notification.
- Raise concerns about a tree affecting a highway.
- Provide general information about relevant procedures.
However, it will not normally arrange or pay for routine work to privately owned trees.
You will usually need to appoint a suitably qualified and insured tree contractor yourself.
9. How Often Should My Trees Be Inspected?
There is no universal rule saying every privately owned tree must be professionally inspected every year.
A sensible inspection frequency depends on factors including:
- Tree age and species
- Structural condition
- Previous defects
- Surrounding land use
- Proximity to buildings
- Road and pedestrian usage
- Changes following storms or construction work
A tree beside a busy road, school entrance or public car park may warrant a different approach from a tree standing in a rarely accessed field.
For many tree owners, the important principle is proportionate management.
Regular observations, appropriate professional inspections and records of significant findings or completed work can demonstrate a sensible approach without unnecessarily inspecting every tree at the same frequency.
Tree Questions Devon Councils Get Asked: Who Can Help?
10. Who Can Help Me Make Sense of All This?
Local authorities are an important source of information about planning controls and council procedures, but they cannot act as your personal arboricultural consultant.
This is where professional tree advice becomes valuable.
Devon Tree Services can help homeowners, businesses, developers, estates and landowners:
- Check whether trees are protected by TPOs or Conservation Area controls.
- Assess tree health and structural condition.
- Undertake professional tree risk assessments.
- Recommend proportionate pruning or management.
- Advise on neighbour and boundary tree issues.
- Manage roadside and highway-related tree work.
- Prepare TPO applications and Conservation Area notifications.
- Consider felling licence requirements.
- Coordinate relevant permissions.
- Carry out professional tree work to recognised industry standards.
As Arboricultural Association Approved Contractors, our work is independently assessed against recognised standards for professional arboriculture, safety and business practice.
Getting the Right Advice Before Tree Work Begins
The common theme running through these Tree Questions Devon Councils Get Asked is that tree management can involve several overlapping responsibilities.
A seemingly simple decision to prune a tree could involve planning controls, wildlife legislation, neighbour rights or highway requirements.
That does not mean tree management needs to become complicated.
The important thing is to establish the facts before work begins.
Professional advice can determine what condition the tree is in, whether work is actually necessary, which permissions apply and how the work should be completed.
At Devon Tree Services, we help clients across Devon navigate these questions and make informed, proportionate decisions about their trees. Whether you have one protected tree in your garden or hundreds of trees across an estate, getting the right advice early can save time, reduce risk and help retain valuable trees wherever reasonably possible.
