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Policy Roundup – July, August & September 2025

October 3, 2025

Our quarterly policy and research blog updates you on the latest work at the Institute and how you can get involved.

Institute news

Welcome to the third quarterly Policy Roundup of 2025, from the Institute’s Technical Policy Manager, Caroline Harrison MICFor.

Special Interest Groups

Our Special Interest Groups continue to meet quarterly, including a new Special Interest Group on Green Finance. The groups are busy planning and delivering #MembersHour, webinars, TREES articles and in-person CPD events. Since the last Policy Roundup, the following CPD activities are confirmed:

Nurseries SIG

#MembersHour: Britain’s Tree Nurseries: What the Strong Roots Project Told Us – book now.
In-person CPD event in April 2026: Visit to Newton Nursery and Moray Estates or Christie-Elite Nursery

Environmental SIG

#MembersHour: Getting to our Roots: Exploring the Impact of Tree Roots on Archaeology – book now.
Conference: Ancient Woodland: Past, Present, and Future: Threats and Opportunities for an Irreplaceable Habitat- book now.
#MembersHour: Protecting Trees from Mammal Damage – watch on the Members Area.

Harvesting and Marketing SIG

#MembersHour: Data Standards in Forestry: More Exciting than it Seems
#MembersHour: Harvesting Operations and Ecological Constraints
Webinar: Ditch the Plastics? It’s Time to Reduce Plastics Pollution in your Woodlands – book now.

Arboriculture and Urban Forestry Steering Group

#MembersHour: Trees, Planning and Construction – watch on the Members Area.
#TreeSurgery: An informal monthly drop-in session for all members working in forestry, environment, arboriculture and urban forestry to get together to talk all things trees.

Green Finance SIG

The Green Finance SIG are planning a series of six webinars that will commence in January 2026. The webinars will cover a range of topics, helping participants to understand the fundamental principles of nature markets; what markets are available; how projects are generated and risk assessed; the technology and innovation driving practice in the field; and then concluding the series with a horizon scanning session.

#MembersHour, webinars & workshops

We try to organise a good range of Members’ Hours, webinars and workshops, both in terms of geographic spread and subject matter, to ensure all sectors within our diverse membership are represented. Members’ Hours, webinars and workshops run during the last quarter were as follows:

3 July – Trees in the News – Why the Sycamore Gap & Whitewebbs Oak are Different
17 July – Successful SuDS: Adapting to Climate Change
4 September – Britain’s Temperate Rainforests: Definitions, Threats & Action
18 September – Ips typographus & Proactive Management in the Demarcated Area

Recordings of #MembersHour are available in the library section of Members Area.

Please feel free to get in touch if you have ideas for future #MembersHour sessions.

UKFS webinars in England & Wales

Following the launch of our Lantra-accredited UK Forestry Standard (UKFS) e-learning course in 2024, we are pleased to now be offering two 90-minute webinars that will help members access country specific guidance related to the UKFS.

The first webinar on 31 October has been designed for those working in Wales. There will be an England-focused webinar in late 2025/early 2026 – stay tuned, bookings are now open for the Wales webinar, and the England webinar will open soon.

Please note that this webinar is free to those enrolled on the UKFS e-learning course. Registration details will be sent to UKFS e-learning delegates separately.

Alternative Silvicultural Systems webinars

We are planning a series of six webinars in collaboration with Forest Research that will commence in 2026. The webinars will cover a range of subject areas including building resilience to climate change; pests and diseases; species diversity, species mixes and structural diversity; the role of silviculture in creating more resilient forests; priorities for climate change; alternatives to traditional planting; barriers to implementing alternative silviculture systems; and, the future impact of drought.

Future regional & national events during 2025

We have a full calendar of regional and national events for the second half of the year. Check the ICF website for upcoming events.

CPD survey

We hope that you took the time to complete our CPD survey that has now closed. We will be analysing the results shortly to see where you think the gaps are in our CPD offering so we can act and improve.

Forestry

Forestry is available exclusively online and is free to all members:

Click here to access the Forestry Journal Archive at Oxford University Press.

Public sector engagement

We continue to build upon the strong relationship we have with DAERA, Defra, Forestry England, Forest Research, Forestry Commission, Forestry and Land Scotland, Natural Resources Wales, and Scottish Forestry. Please feel free to contact Caroline Harrison MICFor if there is anything you would like us to address on your behalf.

Consultations & political advocacy

Responding to public consultations is an important way to influence policy. We consult with members as much as possible and often work in partnership with other organisations to strengthen our messages. We also produce papers on specific topics where it is important to publish our position here.

We have responded to the following consultations since the last Policy Roundup:

Scotland’s Fourth Land Use Strategy: Consultation– Scottish Government, October 2025. Read our response.
Public Consultation on Northern Ireland’s draft Climate Action Plan 2023-2027– DAERA, October 2025. Read our response.
Planning Obligations and Good Neighbour Agreements: Draft Guidance– Scottish Government, September 2025. Read our response.
Expanding the Role of the Private Sector in Nature Recovery– Defra, August 2025. Read our response.

We also encouraged members to respond to:

Draft Environment Strategy – Scottish Government

The draft Environment Strategy sets out a holistic framework for delivering Scotland’s role in tackling the global crises of nature loss, climate change and pollution. It brings together the Scottish Government’s existing policy response, highlighting the importance of carefully managing synergies and trade-offs. It builds on these existing policies by outlining new priorities and proposals. These focus on opportunities for supporting the economic and societal changes needed to help tackle nature loss, climate change and pollution in ways that create wider benefits for Scotland.

Developments

Institute signs joint statement on Local Nature Recovery Strategies

We recently published a joint statement with Confor and the Royal Forestry Society in support of the development and implementation of Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRS) across England, but these LNRS must be developed with a strong foundation in professional forestry expertise, evidence-based standards and collaborative engagement. Please see statement.

RFS launch video to raise awareness of mental health in forestry

The Royal Forestry Society shared the Every Interaction Matters short animation on World Suicide Prevention Day, working in partnership with ourselves, Confor, FISA, and the Forestry Contracting Association, and kindly funded by the Forestry Commission.

ICF launches ‘UKFS for Non-Foresters’ online course to widen understanding of sustainable forest management

We have launched a new online training course designed to bring the best practice principles of the UK Forestry Standard to non-foresters. The course is based on the technical standard for sustainable forestry in the UK, which is not widely known or accessed outside of the forestry sector – and yet its principles should form the basis for any decision-making involving trees and woodlands.

Third version of the Woodland Carbon Code launched

A new version of the Woodland Carbon launched on 1 August 2025. Version 3 incorporates insights from recent research and consultation feedback and aligns with national and international frameworks. The changes are designed to make the Woodland Carbon Code more accessible, practical and commercially viable for the land management sector.

Celebrating progress & world first for grey squirrel fertility control research

Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) researchers funded by the UK Squirrel Accord (UKSA), of which we are one of the founding members, attained a world first for wildlife fertility control. Positive news for a programme aiming to find a non-lethal option for invasive grey squirrel management.

Representation

Our representatives sit on 17 enduring groups, panels, advisory boards, and committees; ten high-level standing groups where staff members represent the Institute; and a constantly evolving number of targeted, time-bound working groups, research teams, and review panels, actively participating, feeding back developments, and advising us on actions to take. The role of an Institute Representative is a crucial touch point between Institute staff, Council, and members.

We will be undertaking a mapping exercise to identify groups where we are not currently represented and determine if additional representation is needed.

If members would like clarification or suggest other groups we should be represented on, or advise on our overall approach, please contact Caroline Harrison MICFor.