Trees have far-reaching benefits for you, your land, the environment and for future generations. By planting trees to the UK Forest Standard (UKFS) coupled with financial support and expert advice, woodlands can help you generate reliable income streams and deliver environmental benefits that support your wider land management goals.

Read our joint statement with Natural England foron our position on woodland creation.creation.

Funding and help to plan a woodland creation project

If you’re planning to create woodland in England you may be eligible for a Forestry Commission grant, such as the Woodland Creation Planning Grant (WCPG).

We can helpgive you developadvice and guidance on the documentslegal regulations you’ll need to planfollow and how to establish your woodland sustainably.

Grants may also be available for planting trees outside of woodland.

Planning a woodland creation project.

project

We can alsohelp advise you ondevelop the legaldocuments regulations you’ll need to followplan anda how to establish your woodland sustainably.creation project.

Landscape and woodland design

For new woodlands in England, you need to carefully design the site to fit within the landscape and accommodate features of interest. Use the guide Landscapelandscape and woodland design for woodland creation to plan the design of your new woodland.

To get regulatory approval and grant funding for your project, your woodland creation design plan must comply with the UK Forest StandardUKFS.

You need to develop a written plan supported by a:

• landscape context plan
• site appraisal plan
• design concept plan
• final woodland creation design plan

See what these plans need to show, and examples, in our guide to planning new woodland in England.

Read about the forest design process:

• UK Forestry Standard
• design techniques for forest management planning.

Woodland Creation Planning Grant (WCPG)

The WCPG can help cover the costs of producing a UKFS compliant woodland creation design plan.

You can apply for up to £150 per hectare, plus a 70% contribution to any specialist surveys that are needed, capped at £30,500£30,000 per project.

WCPG is for planning only and does not provide approval to plant. Proposals with a woodland creation design plan that are approved for payment through WCPG are still subject to Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) regulations.

Funding and grants for woodland creation

You may be eligible for funding and grants to create woodland or plant trees.

We offer funding schemes for woodland creation and tree planting, planning, maintenance, and tree health in England.

England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO)

Landowners, land managers and public bodies can receive over £10,000 per hectare to create new woodland on areas as small as one hectare.

Funding and grants for non-woodland trees

Local Authority Treescapes Fund

Available to local authorities to support planting and growing trees in non-woodland areas, such as urban or rural settings.

Find out more about the Local Authority Treescapes Fund.

Urban Tree Challenge Fund

The fund provides 50% of published standard costs for planting and establishment of trees in urban or peri-urban areas, especially in areas of low canopy cover and high social deprivation.

Find out more about the Urban Tree Challenge Fund.

Get income from selling carbon

If your project is not cost-effective with a woodland creation grant alone, you might be able to earn further income by selling carbon credits from your project.

Find out more about the Woodland Carbon Code scheme for buyers and landowners.

Read more about the benefits of woodland creation woods and carbon and how woodland creation can help tackle climate change.

Woodland Carbon Guarantee (currently closed)

The Woodland Carbon Guarantee provides the option to sell your captured carbon in the form of verified carbon credits (Woodland Carbon Units) to the government for a guaranteed price.

You must first be registered with the Woodland Carbon Code to be eligible, and planting must not have happened yet.

We run several auctions per year for Woodland Carbon Guarantee funding. Only those who have already applied are able to take part in future auctions.

Other funding opportunities

Funding from our partners

We work with a number of partners who offer woodland creation opportunities to help provide an option to suit everyone.

Tree planting and woodland creation: funding and advice shows all available grants and incentives, including those from other organisations. These include the Woodland Creation Partnership, Forestry England and England’s Community Forests.

Protect, Improve, Expand, Sustain (PIES) offer

You may be eligible to receive 3 days of fully-funded advice from an expert. They can provide vital information to support you in taking the next steps in managing existing woodland and/or creating new wooded areas on your property. The offer is provided by a consortium of partners under the Defra-funded PIES project.

Find out more about the PIES offer and how to apply.

Tax planning

The Conditional Exemption Tax Incentive Scheme was set up to preserve and protect national heritage. This includes woodland.

Find out if you can get relief from Inheritance Tax and Capital Gains Tax.

When to apply for an Environmental Impact Assessment

The EIA process has 2 stages. Most projects only need to complete the first stage.

If you want to create new woodland without grant support from us, you may need to apply for a ‘stage 1’ forestry Environmental Impact Assessment. This is dependent on the size and location of the proposed project.

If your proposal has been approved for a Woodland Creation Planning Grant, you can submit the plan with your ‘stage 1’ EIA application. You don’t need to complete all sections of the application form.

If you’re applying to us for funding, for example, through the England Woodland Creation Offer, there is no need to apply for an EIA. Your grant application is sufficient for us to complete the EIA process. This is providing you have included all the required information in your application.

If you have completed the Woodland Creation Planning Grant for your proposal, your approved woodland creation design plan will be used for the EIA process. So you won’t need to complete all of the England Woodland Creation Offer application form.

Find out more about when to apply for an EIA.

CreatingGuides sustainableand woodlandscase studies

ReadCreating theand UKFS.managing Thisriparian iswoodland theprovides referenceadvice standardon forcreating, sustainabledesigning forestand managementmanaging acrossriparian thewoodland UK.

The UKFS applies to allprotect UK woodland and explainsenhance theriparian international agreements and conventionsaquatic thathabitats. applyThis toguide sustainableis forestin managementline towith addressUK climateForestry change,Standard helprequirements biodiversity and protectGuidelines soilon Forests and waterWater.

Plant resources.your Itfuture: coversthe allcase forestryfor activitiestrees inoutlines the UKbenefits andthat setstrees outcan thebring legalto requirementsyour land and bestthe practicefinancial standardsand forexpert ownerssupport of woodland.available.

LearnGuide morefor aboutplanning whatnew towoodland considerin whenEngland creatingshows woodland using the UKnecessary Forestrysteps Standard.

Sustainabilityof bestplanning, practice

When designing and creating new woodlands,woodland useto thehelp Forestyou Researchcreate toola Ecologicalcomprehensive Siteplan Classificationthat Decisionwill Supportmake System.your Thiswoodland willsustainable helpand youUKFS selectcompliant.

Plant speciesyour ecologicallyfuture: suitedtop 5 reasons to yourplant site.

Youwoodland shoulddetails alsothe considerbenefits howthat treetrees speciesadd suitabilityto isyour likelyland, toyour changelocal incommunity, the environment and future. generations.

Habitats

How andwoodland speciescreation protection

Youcan needbenefit toyour considerfarm habitatsoutlines the financial incentives and speciesexpert alreadysupport presentavailable. onLearn thehow landwoodland whencreation planningcan ahelp newyou woodland.

Finddiversify outand moregenerate about:reliable revenue streams.

• managing

  The andbenefits protectingof woodland wildlifecreation: woods and water

• how toexplains benefitthe speciesbenefits that tree planting and habitatswoodland biodiversitycreation inbring yourto woodland
• creatingwater management and managingwater riparian woodland

quality.

YouThe mustbenefits alsoof planwoodland howcreation: bestwoods tofor protectnature theexplains treeshow thatwoodland youcreation plant.can help biodiversity.

Case studies

FindHear outfrom morethose about:

• treewho pestshave andalready diseases
• managingcompleted threatssuccessful fromwoodland destructivecreation animalsprojects andon invasivetheir species
• preventingland. theRead spreadour of tree pestsplanting and diseaseswoodland creation case studies.