Agenda item

      i.         Joanna Davies, from the Urban Forest Consultancy, joined the meeting online and introduced the item.

    ii.         She reported that Cambridge has had a citywide tree strategy in place since 2016, and it had delivered significant progress. The city now proactively managed around 30,000 council trees, had expanded planting across streets and open spaces, strengthened community engagement, and successfully attracted substantial external funding to support this work.

   iii.         However, the majority of Cambridge's tree canopy (around three quarters) was outside direct council ownership. At the same time, the challenges facing the city had evolved since 2016 with increased pressure from climate change, urban heating, development, pest diseases, and competing demands on urban space. Evidence showed that canopy cover had increased slightly but remained unevenly distributed across the city.

  iv.         The focus was moving from managing council trees alone to recognising trees collectively as part of the city's critical green infrastructure requiring collaboration across services and with partners.

    v.         Planting alone would not have a meaningful impact on canopy change quickly enough. Therefore, protecting existing trees and allowing them to mature as well as working beyond council land ownership were essential to secure long-term benefits.

  vi.         The strategy included achieving at least 20% canopy cover by 2050. That ambition was evidence-led, realistic, and intentionally framed as a minimum aspiration rather than a fixed ceiling.

 vii.         Both internal and public engagement had shown strong support overall for the direction of travel, and following feedback the strategy had been clarified, shortened, and simplified.

viii.         Following the presentation, Members were invited to discuss the draft strategy. The Committee was generally supportive of the plans outlined, and asked officers and the Cabinet Member questions on various aspects of the strategy and associated documents.

  ix.         Topics covered included: whether the 20% biodiversity net gain was ambitions enough, the benefits of large canopy trees (compared to smaller trees and shrubs), the gender of trees and corresponding impact on pollen levels and allergies, the key risks and constraints in delivering the strategy, how the strategy dealt with issues such as subsidence and structural damage caused by trees, planning policy, and how existing trees can best be protected including the process around TPOs (Tree Preservation Orders).

    x.         Following this, the Committee agreed the following:

• To note the progress made in developing the Urban Forest Strategy 2026-2036

·      To recommend the Strategy to the Cabinet for adoption.