Welcome to your Urban Forest Accelerator Toolkit. Developed for you by the Community Forest Trust, National Trust and Woodland Trust, this practical guide builds on the pioneering work and successes of urban local authorities and England’s Community Forests. This toolkit is based on a two-year project to trial ways to expand Birmingham’s urban forest, with input from across the urban forestry sector. It offers support for the early steps, and aims to enable the change we need at scale.
If you’re a local authority decision-maker, officer or manager, work for an environmental organisation or volunteer in your local community, this toolkit is for you. It is designed to help you consider how to increase tree canopy cover in your town or city, and how to do this equitably by ensuring that all residents have access to the benefits of trees.
Are you ready to discover how equitable urban forests could benefit generations of people in your town or city? Explore our partnerships with Birmingham City Council and Birmingham Tree People. Access how-to guides and real-life case studies. Then follow the signposts if you want to dig even deeper.
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An urban forest is a collective term for the trees in our towns and cities. This includes all woody plant vegetation from the town and city centres to urban fringes. From mature networks in woodlands to shrubs in gardens and schools. Together this green infrastructure plays an integral role in the urban forest ecosystem we’re all part of.
Urban areas are a complex mix of land-uses where space is at a premium. Average urban canopy cover in the UK is around 17%, but limitations on space and budgets mean that planning, establishing, managing and expanding our urban forests is a complex challenge.
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From challenge to opportunity
We can help shape the future of sustainable forest management through stronger collaborations – engaging communities locally so they become part of the bigger urban forest solution.
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Trees and people are inextricably connected. Our urban forests provide real, measurable social, economic and environmental benefits like keeping our towns and cities cool as the world gets hotter, lowering pollution, improving our wellbeing and growing the green economy.
Our challenge is not just to manage more trees to maturity where they can deliver more of these benefits. It’s also making sure they’re distributed equitably so that communities everywhere enjoy their fair share of the benefits of trees.
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From challenge to opportunity
We can use tree equity mapping tools to help create healthy, liveable and resilient towns and cities for everyone.
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Knowing how to increase tree canopy cover, in the right way, in the areas where it’s most needed requires a long-term strategic approach. One that’s shaped around your unique set of budget, capacity and service demands. Whether it’s mandatory housing targets or Local Nature Recovery Strategies, trees need to be considered carefully to deliver on their full potential.