New guide to help local authorities conduct a people survey on the social value of their treescapes

A new step by step guide to help local authorities, charities and civic societies carry out a people survey to understand social and cultural values related to trees in their area, is now available.

Download the guide

Liz O’Brien, Principal Social Scientist at Forest Research said, “Understanding a local treescape, the ways people engage with it, and how they value it is critical when developing strategies and planning resource management. The people survey can run alongside an i-Tree Eco study to provide a more holistic understanding of a local treescape or run as a standalone project to understand communities’ perceptions of their local treescape.”

i-Tree Eco assesses some of the benefits trees provide. It measures urban forest structure, the environmental effects of the treescape, and benefits to communities, including air pollution reduction and avoided runoff. Although the i-Tree Eco methodology estimates the benefits a treescape can provide, it does not capture the range of ways that people value trees, how they engage with them, or their views about how the treescape is or should be managed.

Forest Research, in association with The Tree Council, University of York and FERA, and funded through Defra’s Future Proofing Plant Health  fund, have therefore developed a new guide to a ‘people survey’ to complement the core i-Tree Eco approach.

Gathering an in-depth understanding about social and cultural dimensions can help local authorities, charities and civic societies to:

• Be holistic: by combining environmental data on local treescapes with the views of local communities.
• Focus on areas with a need for trees: canopy cover tends to be related to levels of deprivation, with the most deprived areas having the lowest cover.
• Take a proactive approach: social and cultural values emerge strongly at catalyst moments when trees are threatened by management or development. This is often at too late a stage for the tree(s) to be saved. Understanding values can potentially help to avoid these types of situations.
• Be strategic: this evidence is important for strategic planning to ensure that benefits to people such as health, sense of place, seeing wildlife and nature connection, are distributed equitably.
• Deliver multiple policy objectives: the information can also be linked to other broad policy areas, such as active travel, public health, the green economy, and community cohesion.

Charlotte Benham, The Tree Council’s Science and Action Research Manager, said: “The people survey is a really useful tool for land managers to better understand their treescape, and the way residents and users interact with and value trees.

“We would encourage local authorities and others to consider using this survey approach, along with the information in the Social and Cultural Values module of the Trees and Woodlands Strategy Toolkit, to ensure the views of their communities are represented in decision-making.”

Two local authorities, Wirral Borough Council and Portsmouth City Council, helped trial and shape the guidance:

Senior Tree and Woodland Manager, Wirral Borough Council

“By incorporating the social and cultural values of trees into our decision-making and policies, we adopt a more holistic approach to tree management. This ensures that our green spaces not only meet community needs but also foster public engagement, promote wellbeing, and play a vital role in advancing sustainable development.”

Green and Healthy City Project Officer, Portsmouth City Council

“Integrating the Social and Cultural Values survey into the work we are doing for our resilient treescape has been a valuable addition. We are using it to inform the creation of our Urban Forest Master Plan, that sets out our long-term vision, with measurable actions, to continue developing our resilient treescape. It is allowing us to make the actions and targets within the plan tailored and specific to Portsmouth, helping us to achieve the best for our treescape and the benefits it brings to our residents.”