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Written question asked by Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat) on Friday, 28 August 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 2 September 2026. It was answered by Jenny Riddell-Carpenter (Labour) on Monday, 14 September 2026 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Tree Planting: Urban Areas

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many trees have been planted in England in each of the last two years; and what proportion of those trees were planted in urban and residential areas.

Answer

The Forestry Commission publishes planting statistics annually. Approximately 17,571,000 trees were planted in England between April 2023 and March 2025 contributing to the statutory tree canopy target. Approximately 3% were within built up areas.

Government funding is supporting planting in urban areas. This includes working with the Tree Council to invest over £3 million since April 2025 to plant trees outside woods. Approximately 125,000 trees have been planted in urban areas across 28 local authorities. We are currently developing future options for planting support for urban trees.

Tree planting rates over the last two years (2024/25 and 2025/26) are the highest in England for more than two decades, with over 13,500 hectares of trees planted over these two years.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
22176
Session
2026-27
Subjects
Housing Urban areas Tree planting
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk