Doncaster Council to review street tree strategy after protests

Police at Middlefield Road in Bessacarr in 2020

The prolonged dispute over tree felling in Sheffield has prompted another local authority to consider changing its approach to dealing with street trees.

Doncaster Council's new policy follows anger after trees were removed on Middlefield Road in Bessacarr leading to protests and an arrest last year.

The council said it is committed to the principle of "minimal tree removal" as a last resort and where no alternative solution can be found.

The review will be discussed on Friday.

More Yorkshire stories

Bethany Haley, of Doncaster council, said the authority is wary of protests in the town turning into a long-running feud as happened in Sheffield, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

She said: "Following high profile tree issues in Sheffield and recent discussions with activists around Doncaster tree removal schemes, an independent tree policy review was initiated [to ensure Doncaster's] policy was fit for purpose."

The strategy includes planting 100 large trees along the town's main highways.

This will "improve the environment and help increase canopy cover in the borough" and would take four years, the council said.

Following the protests in 2020, the council said the trees needed to be removed on safety grounds, but campaigners argued there were alternative options without ripping the tree out of the ground.

Trees along Rustlings Road in Sheffield were cut down by workers at 05:00, prompting angry scenes from residents who had no prior warning

Doncaster Council said it will discuss a new strategy with activists, professional tree consultants and an independent regulator - likely to be the Woodland Trust.

In July 2019, Sheffield Council agreed a U-turn on its strategy over tree-felling and in October a watchdog report said it had published documents in the middle of the night to "avoid scrutiny" over its controversial programme.