Webinar: Observing and understanding oak health across the UK

Throughout 2025, the Forest Lab: Observing and understanding oak health project has been working closely with oak woodland managers to develop a practical, easy-to-use and scientifically robust tree health evaluation system. After a successful year of co-designing the methodology and reporting framework, we’re now ready to open the project to a wider network of observers across the UK. 

To introduce the project, share early insights, and demonstrate how our assessment tools can support real-world woodland management, we’re hosting: 

• An online webinar 
• A series of half‑day field workshops across June and July 2026 

These events are ideal for woodland managers and volunteers.  

The webinar will cover three key themes:

1. Understanding oak health:including current knowledge on Acute Oak Decline and other threats to oak.
2. The forest lab oak health project: the aims, methods developed so far, and what the initial results are telling us.
3. From assessment to action:tutorial on using the oak health assessment app and how this can inform evidence‑based and scientific woodland management decisions. 

About the project 

A partnership between Forest Research, Aberystwyth University and Sylva Foundation, this project aims to build a long-term, collaborative approach to oak health monitoring.  

Through this programme, we are working to develop: 

• A growing community of woodland managers empowered to assess, understand, and act on signs of oak decline 
• A robust nationwide system for observing and recording oak health across the UK—with potential for future expansion to other tree species.