Project
Improving Tree Safety across Cambridgeshire Schools
Client
Cambridgeshire County Council
Background
Regular tree inspections for schools allow early detection of poor tree health, decay, and structural issues, enabling schools to engage qualified arborist contractors to manage unsafe trees before they pose a risk.
By implementing a rolling programme of tree inspection, management, and monitoring, schools can demonstrate compliance with their legal duty of care to safeguard pupils, staff, and visitors. This proactive approach ensures school grounds remain safe and well-maintained.
Cambridgeshire County Council, aware of the potential risks posed by trees on school sites, commissioned a comprehensive tree safety audit.
We were first engaged in 2018 to carry out tree surveys across the majority of primary and secondary schools under the Council’s management. Recognising that tree risk assessments require regular review, the Council has continued to commission us for subsequent inspections, most recently in 2025, updating the tree work schedule and ensuring ongoing school tree safety compliance.
How we helped
For Cambridgeshire County Council, we carried out a comprehensive tree inventory across more than 100 maintained schools, including Forest Schools, creating a prioritised schedule of tree works so contractors can prioritise tree safety work. This approach reduces tree risk while helping schools use their budgets effectively.
Our digital surveys and mapping ensure all data, reports, and management plans are reliable and future-proof, giving the Council a long-term return on investment in school tree safety and tree risk management.
All surveys are tailored to each school’s needs, with flexible report formats to suit school management or contractors. We are fully DBS-checked and work around the demands of school life, carrying out inspections during quiet periods, holidays, or at times that minimize disruption to pupils and staff.
In addition to the scheduled inspections, we provide rapid response for urgent tree concerns, including storm damage or sudden safety issues, ensuring school grounds remain safe for pupils, staff, and visitors at all times.
Want a tree safety survey for your school?
We can provide a cost-effective survey programme to help you manage tree risk and remain compliant. Please contact us to discuss! Download our Guide to Tree Safety Surveys for Schools here.
What our clients say
“The school tree surveys have been an invaluable tool in a more planned and preventative approach to tree risk” and
“A massive Thank You for all of your hard work and dedication in providing the survey platform, which still proves to be the backbone of what we do here in Cambridgeshire for the past 12 years”
R.R. Council Officer, Cambridgeshire County Council
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What our clients say
Guy, you are a prince among men!
Thanks for taking time out to look at the tree and for your incredibly helpful advice!
