We’re planting for the future, with a long-term commitment to create and restore woodland across the Estate. So far, over 31,000 trees have been planted, with thousands more to follow, helping to lock up carbon, support wildlife and improve water management.
This forms part of a wider ambition to plant 600,000 trees over the next 20 years, focusing on areas where woodland can make the greatest environmental impact. Managed with care using continuous cover forestry, these woodlands will remain productive, resilient and full of life for generations to come.
Our forestry team manages around 710 hectares of mixed woodland under a Forestry Commission-approved UN Forestry Standard-compliant 20-year Woodland Management Plan (WMP), which also meets the UK Woodland Assurance Standard (UKWAS) and is independently monitored. These woodlands provide renewable woodchip for our biomass boilers, as well as timber and firewood.
We also protect several areas of ancient woodland, including six “Champion Trees” in the parkland – remarkable ecosystems that have been cared for on the Estate for centuries.
