New Space for People report highlights shortfall in locally accessible woodland
A new Woodland Trust report published today gives a snap shot of the extent of publicly accessible woodland close to people's homes.
'Space for People' is the Woodland Trust’s analysis of map data on woodland with permissive public access. The Trust collects the data annually under its 'Woods for People' project, a partnership with the Forestry Commission. The Trust first analysed and reported on this data five years ago, and the latest report provides a brand new picture of this vital resource and the part it can play in improving people's quality of life and providing direct health benefits on their doorsteps.
The new analysis, which comes just a week after Clive Anderson launched the Trust's 'More Trees, More Good' campaign for the planting of 20 million native trees a year across the UK for the next 50 years, reveals that just over 15 per cent of people in the UK have access to a wood of reasonable size within easy walking distance of their homes.
These figures have been broken down further to regional and local authority area.
While the percentage of people with access to woodland is shown to have increased over the last five years, with a marked improvement in Scotland, there is still a substantial deficit. On average, 60% of the UK population requires new woodland planting in order to comply with the Trust's minimum Woodland Access Standard, equivalent to 35,000 ha, with England requiring by far the greatest proportion of that total at over 28,000 ha.
Sian Atkinson, conservation team leader at the Woodland Trust and report author, said: "Research shows that access to woodland and other natural green spaces can improve people’s health and well-being, and often aids social cohesion. The Trust believes that everyone should have access to woodland within easy reach of their homes, which is one of the main reasons why the 'More Trees, More Good' campaign aims to facilitate a doubling of native woodland cover in this country.
"Our latest policy research also demonstrates how woods and trees can substantially improve air quality, reduce surface water flooding and ambient temperatures, all of which contribute to our quality of life and in some cases can impact on people's health for the better. By delivering on so many agendas at once, woods and trees offer great value for money at a time of enormous pressure on the public finances."
Case studies reveal that proximity to green space encourages long term exercise habits and its benefits are enhanced by being carried out in the natural environment. Lack of physical activity costs the economy in England alone over £8 billion a year and mental health problems, which affect one in six people in the UK, cost the economy over £23 billion. Woodland has also been shown to offer relief from stress and access to it is beneficial for children's development and overall health.
Ms Atkinson continued: "The data collected in this report does show that where the right policies and incentives are in place, improvements can be made, but it also reveals that that there is a really long way to go in order to scale up tree planting sufficiently in this country. This is why 'Space for People' is a call to government to get behind woodland creation and to initiate the step change the Trust believes needs to take place now.
"The UK has tree cover equivalent to only just over a quarter of the European average, and the recently published figures show UK planting rates are in continued decline while existing woods and trees are being lost. The Trust is delighted that the Coalition government has plans for a national tree planting campaign, an approach we have long campaigned for, but it needs to spearhead a wider drive to reverse current trends."Notes to editors
For media enquiries contact:
The Woodland Trust Press Office on 01476 581121, email: media@woodlandtrust.org.uk
The Woodland Trust:
The Woodland Trust is the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity. It has 300,000 members and supporters.
The Trust has three key aims: i) to enable the creation of more native woods and places rich in trees ii) to protect native woods, trees and their wildlife for the future iii) to inspire everyone to enjoy and value woods and trees
Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering approximately 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres). Access to its sites is free.
The Woodland Access Standard was developed by the Woodland Trust and is now adopted by many others including the Forestry Commission. It aspires that no person should live more than 500 metres from at least one area of accessible woodland of no less than 2 ha in size, and more than 4km (8km round trip) from a wood of not less than 20 ha. The proportion of people who currently have access to woodland within easy reach of their homes was calculated on the basis of these criteria.
Full report
‘More Trees, More Good’ is a new Woodland Trust campaign which aims to double the number of native woods and trees in the UK. In order to maximize the benefits which trees can bring to people, wildlife and the environment in a changing climate, the UK needs to plant 20 million native trees per year – but at the moment we’re planting just 6 million. The initiative is supported by Sainsbury’s, the National Association of Local Councils, the Ministry of Defence and the Women’s Institute. The coalition government has also committed to a national tree planting campaign.
‘More Trees More Good’ offers a range of support to enable individuals and organisations to plant their own trees: for larger schemes, there is a team of expert advisers who will make site visits to offer guidance on planting and accessing government funding. For smaller schemes, the Trust works in partnership with landowners by supplying expertise and sharing some of the costs through the MoreWoods programme. For schools and community groups, there are free or reduced-price tree packs available. Anyone can also choose to make a donation to enable others to plant trees in their area.
