Last updated: December 2024
Author: Rob Lambert
Editor at Arbtech, Rob is a content specialist who manages our ecology and arboriculture services copy to ensure it is accurate, up to date, and insightful for current and future clients.
Durham Countryside and Rural Areas
Hailed as a cultural cornerstone of the North East and home to the famous Durham Cathedral, the City of Durham has many notable landmarks. One example is Durham Castle which houses Durham University – the sixth top-rated university in the UK.
The City of Durham is located within the broader, largely countryside Durham County. According to Durham Insight, 57% of County Durham is classed as rural. It is also home to over 60 different types of trees and hedges, and the local council’s intention to maintain and improve the existing level of biodiversity has prompted thousands of more trees to be planted in the county over future months.
Conservation, Preservation and Protection of Trees
Bishop Auckland, Durham City, Seaham and Stanley are all areas within County Durham. Each area and the towns and villages within them must abide by the rules of Durham County Council. In terms of trees and other potentially valuable forms of plant life, Durham County Council has several important rules that ensure no tree is moved or damaged unless it is necessary to do so.
Durham County Council states that they should be informed if there are any enquiries regarding trees they own, but that privately owned trees are outside of their jurisdiction. Instead, the landowner where the trees are situated should be contacted. It is also important that the council receive direct consent before trees located on conservation sites or protected under tree preservation orders (TPOs) are disturbed.
Trees Surveys in County Durham
Ensuring none of Durham County’s rules around tree preservation are breached is an important factor, and doing so will enable you to apply for planning permission. The recommended way of doing this would be through booking a tree survey with a qualified arboriculturist. A BS5837 tree survey is a British standard assessment that allows an arboricultural consultant to make informed suggestions based on the trees present on the site.
The arboriculturist will start by grading each tree on the site, using this level of analysis to gauge whether each tree should be kept, moved elsewhere or destroyed. All results from the survey will then be annotated at length in a thorough report and submitted to the local planning authority as part of the application for planning permission.
Arrange a Tree Survey Today
In order for a development project to progress to future stages, a planning permission application needs to be accepted by the local planning authority. If trees are present on the site and the project is likely to disturb them in any way, the local planning authority will not consider a planning application without assurances that there is a suitable approach for dealing with the trees.
A tree survey conducted by one of our arboricultural consultants will tick all of the boxes you need to gain planning permission. To book a survey, simply contact us over the phone or by filling in the quote box on this page, and we will supply you with a free quote based on the size of your site and project.