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Industry insights, service updates, and practical guidance for planning, design, and construction teams.

Guides

Practical explainers

Surveys, standards and what planning authorities expect — written for developers, architects and agents.

GuideBat Surveys

What a Bat Survey Actually Involves — and Why You Cannot Afford to Skip One

Bat survey explained for UK planning — PRA and emergence surveys, BCT guidelines, seasonal windows May–October, EPS licensing and how to get a fixed quote.

GuideTree Surveys

Why Tree Surveys Matter — and What a BS5837 Actually Involves

BS5837 tree survey explained for UK planning applications — what LPAs require, what the site visit covers, Tree Constraints Plans, typical timelines and how to get a fixed quote.

Latest

Articles & updates

Service news and industry commentary for planning, design and construction teams.

BS5837 Tree Survey Cost in 2026: What to Expect

Find out what a BS5837 tree survey costs in 2026, what drives the price up or down, and how to budget accurately for your planning application.

Discharging a Tree Planning Condition: What Evidence Councils Want

Find out exactly what evidence councils expect when discharging a tree planning condition, so you can avoid delays and get approval first time.

Pre-Application Advice: Getting a Tree Officer's View Early

Learn how pre-application advice from a tree officer shapes your design before tree constraints force costly redesigns after submission.

Further Information Requested on a Tree Planning Condition

Find out what a further information request on a tree planning condition means, why it happens, and what you need to submit to move forward.

Tree Survey Timing and Your Planning Application

Commissioning tree surveys after design is fixed causes costly redesigns. Learn the correct sequence for tree survey timing on a planning application.

BS5837 Survey Timeline: How Long Does It Take?

Find out how long a BS5837 tree survey takes from instruction to report, what each stage involves, and what causes delays on real development projects.

Arboricultural Method Statement to Save a Tree

Find out how an arboricultural method statement can justify pruning a protected tree instead of removal, satisfying the council and keeping your project on track.

Tree Survey Validity and Expiry for Planning

A tree survey for planning is valid for two years, but can expire sooner. Find out what invalidates a survey and how to avoid costly project delays.

Planning Permission When Trees Are Removed Before a Survey

Removed trees before a BS5837 survey was done? This creates serious problems for your planning application. Find out what LPAs assume and how to recover.

Tree Survey for Backland Plot with TPO Neighbours

A guide for developers on the specific arboricultural reports needed for a backland plot with neighbouring TPO trees. Covers BS 5837, AIA, and AMS.

BS 5837 Is Changing. Here's What It Means for Your Project.

The British Standard behind every planning tree survey is being revised for the first time since 2012. Here is what is changing, when it lands, and what developers should do now.

Ancient Trees and Your Planning Application

Natural England and the Forestry Commission publish standing advice on ancient woodland, ancient trees, and veteran trees that planning authorities must treat as material. Here is what it says and what it means for your development.

Tree Planting Targets Are Off Track. What It Means for Developers.

England's tree planting targets are being missed by wide margins. That pressure is shifting into the planning system — and it is showing up in the conditions being attached to consents right now.

Why Your BS5837 Tree Survey Gets Rejected at Validation (and How to Avoid It)

Why LPAs reject BS5837 tree surveys at validation — outdated reports, missing AIAs and TPPs, RPA errors, drawing standards, and how to submit a complete arboricultural package first time.

Bat Surveys for Planning: What Triggers One and Why Timing Matters

What triggers a bat survey, how the process works from PRA through to planning, and why the season closing in September matters for your timeline.

Ecology Surveys

How eDNA Is Changing Ecology Surveys and What It Means for Your Planning Timeline

Environmental DNA testing is reshaping how protected species are detected on development sites. For developers frustrated by ecological survey delays, here is what the technology can and cannot do for your project.

Ecology Surveys

BNG for NSIPs: What the November 2026 Deadline Means for Your Infrastructure Project

Biodiversity Net Gain becomes mandatory for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects on 2 November 2026. Here is what developers need to do now — and why leaving it late will cost you.

The BS5837 Revision: What's Changing and What It Means for Your Planning Application

The first revision of BS5837 since 2012 is on its way. Here is what developers, architects and homeowners need to know before it lands — and why it will affect tree surveys on almost every development site in England.

Tree Surveys Through an ESG Lens: Why Corporate Estates Are Paying Attention

Trees on your estate are no longer just a facilities management issue. As nature related disclosure requirements tighten across UK corporate reporting, knowing exactly what you have — and proving you manage it responsibly — is becoming a boardroom concern.