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Planning

Tree surveys for London planning applications

Trees on or beside your site can decide where you may build. A tree survey records each one, rates it and shows the root protection area the scheme must respect. We arrange the survey through an accredited arboriculturist and coordinate it with your drawings, from £445.

From £445, no VAT to add

  • MCIAT chartered
  • £2m PI insured
  • LABC Partnered
  • Fixed fees, no VAT to add

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We use it to check conservation areas and constraints.
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    The fixed fee for tree surveys

    Fixed fee
    from £445
    Total you pay
    from £445
    Council fee
    paid to the council separately

    No VAT to add. The fee is fixed in writing after a free constraints check of your address.

    What you get

    • A survey by an accredited arboriculturist
    • Each affected tree recorded and categorised
    • A plan showing root protection areas
    • Advice on foundations and protection during building
    • Coordinated with your drawings
    • Ready to submit with your application
    Request your fixed quoteCall 020 7131 9703
    Architectural model of a four-storey London stucco townhouse in its terrace, with a portico, area railings, sash windows, a cornice and chimney stacks
    The house as it stands: four storeys over a lower ground floor.Existing Proposed worksAn illustrative model, built for this page.

    How we work on tree surveys

    Seven steps from first call to approval.

    The same model cut through the middle: every floor, the stair, the chimney breasts, the new mansard, rear extension and basement in section
    Section through the model: every floor on one datum.

    1. Enquiry and constraints check

      We check the property against conservation areas, listed status, Article 4 directions, tree preservation orders, flood zone and planning history. We choose the right route and send a fixed quote.

    2. Measured survey

      We survey the house on one datum: rooms, levels, boundaries, drains, trees and the neighbours' windows that the 45° and 25° tests depend on.

    3. Design options

      We model the house in Revit and show you options in 3D and plan, with the planning strategy and the precedents in your street.

    4. Design frozen

      You choose an option in writing. Nothing changes after this without your say.

    5. Independent check

      A second chartered technologist checks every sheet against the council's validation checklist and the policy. A senior review signs it off before anything is submitted.

    6. Submission

      We prepare the forms, certificates, fee and documents and submit through the Planning Portal.

    7. Officer liaison

      We answer the planning officer and make any amendments within five working days, at no charge until approval.

    Free redraws until approval. Every drawing set is checked independently, and the checker is never the person who drew it.

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    Why the council asks

    A tree in a conservation area or under a tree preservation order is not yours to alter freely. The order prohibits "Cutting down, topping, lopping, uprooting, wilful damage and wilful destruction without the local planning authority's consent," and the guidance adds that "Cutting roots is a prohibited activity that requires consent." Roots matter because an extension's foundations often cut through them.

    So the council wants evidence that the building and the tree can coexist. That evidence is the survey.

    Pencil resting on a dimensioned technical drawing beside a scale rule

    What the survey contains

    The arboriculturist visits and records each tree that could be affected: species, height, trunk diameter, condition and expected remaining life. Each is given a category, from trees worth designing around to those that need not constrain the scheme.

    The survey follows the British Standard for trees in relation to design, demolition and construction. It produces a plan marking the root protection area of every retained tree and, where the design is close, an assessment of the impact. Where the foundations must be dug nearby, it recommends the method.

    Notice and penalties

    Where there is no order but the site is in a conservation area, the owner must give notice before work: the council has 6 weeks, and the notice "The notice must describe the work proposed and include sufficient particulars to identify the tree or trees."

    Getting this wrong is serious. The offence is plain: a person who "Cuts down, uproots or wilfully destroys a tree in contravention of a tree preservation order" is guilty of it, and on conviction is "Liable on summary conviction, or on conviction on indictment, to a fine." The Act states no upper limit for that fine. Clearing a tree before applying can also lose a site its permission.

    How it works with the design

    The right time for the survey is before the drawings are fixed. If the root protection area crosses the rear garden, the extension can step back or change its foundations, and we find that out on paper.

    The survey then goes in with your planning drawings. A constraints search comes first if you are unsure whether your trees are protected; our planning constraints report answers that. If there are bats in an old tree or the roof, see our bat survey page.

    For landlords and investors

    A mature tree can be the difference between a viable conversion and a stalled one. Before committing to a site, ask for the survey, so the layout you buy for is the layout the council can accept.

    Our feasibility study can use the survey's plan to test options around the tree before you spend on full drawings.

    The national rules in figures

    Figures with their unit, period and source
    MeasureValuePeriodSource
    Town and Country Planning Act 1990, section 211(3): notice before work on a tree in a conservation area6 weeks—legislation.gov.uk
    Planning practice guidance, tree preservation orders: what an order prohibitsCutting down, topping, lopping, uprooting, wilful damage and wilful destruction without the local planning authority's consent—gov.uk
    Planning practice guidance, tree preservation orders: rootsCutting roots is a prohibited activity that requires consent—gov.uk
    Planning practice guidance, trees in conservation areas: what a notice must containThe notice must describe the work proposed and include sufficient particulars to identify the tree or trees—gov.uk
    Town and Country Planning Act 1990, section 210(1): offence of cutting down or destroying a protected treeCuts down, uproots or wilfully destroys a tree in contravention of a tree preservation order—legislation.gov.uk
    Town and Country Planning Act 1990, section 210(2): penalty for that offenceLiable on summary conviction, or on conviction on indictment, to a fine—legislation.gov.uk

    A blank value means the figure has not been published, not that there are none. Check your own address with the council.

    Which application your project needsLawful Development Certificate decision: 8 weeks. Prior approval decision: 42 days. Householder decision: 8 weeksYour projectWithin permitted development?Lawful Development CertificatePrior approvalHouseholder applicationYesLarger rear extensionNoABC

    Which application your project needs

    The usual route for a house; flats and listed buildings follow other rules.

    A · Lawful Development Certificate decision
    8 weeks
    B · Prior approval decision
    42 days
    C · Householder decision
    8 weeks

    What you receive

    Planning drawing sheet for a rear extension with plans, elevations and sections
    Sample drawing. Planning drawings for a rear extension: plans, elevations and sections on one sheet set.
    Rows of brick terraced houses and gardens on a residential street
    The street around you
    Move across the plinth — the blocks rise around the pointer.

    Questions

    Can I check if a tree is protected?

    Yes. Ask the council, or let our constraints report do it. Trees in a conservation area are protected even without an order.

    Does a neighbour's tree matter?

    Yes. Roots and canopy cross boundaries, so trees next door can limit where your foundations go.

    Do I need a survey for every project?

    Only where trees are near the works. The council's validation list says when, and we check it before you order.

    Will the survey let me remove a protected tree?

    No. Removal needs the council's consent. The survey shows whether the design can keep the tree.

    Sources and dates

    City of London skyline glowing at dusk across the Thames under a dramatic orange sky

    Tell us about your property.

    We check the constraints, then send a fixed fee. Messages before 3pm get a reply the same working day.

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