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Professional Forester of the Year Winner Announced at Confor Dinner & Awards 2024

The Institute of Chartered Foresters is delighted to announce that Gordon Brown MICFor, Managing Director of TreeStory, has been awarded Professional Forester of the Year 2024. Presented on 12 March at the Confor Dinner & Awards 2024, the award recognises contributions to the betterment of forestry on a community, regional, national or international level. Professional […]

Scotland’s Finest Woods Awards 2024 – One Month Left to Nominate

There is now just over one month left to nominate for Scotland’s Finest Woods Awards! Jean Nairn, Executive Director of Scotland’s Finest Woods, gives us an insight into what we can expect this year… The landscape is changing, in more ways than one. Forestry and farming are now working more closely together with agroforestry becoming […]

Changes to the Forestry Commission’s consultation process

Announced in September 2023, the first phase of the Forestry Commission’s new approach to consultation has been implemented. The changes hope to reduce the complexity and length of time it takes to apply for and get approval to plant and fell trees, with a more simplified approach to evidence gathering for forestry proposals without duplication […]

Professional Forester of the Year 2024 – Shortlist announced

The Institute of Chartered Foresters is delighted to announce the four shortlisted candidates for the 2024 Professional Forester of the Year, the prestigious award that recognises outstanding service to the profession and the sector. This award recognises the contributions made by Chartered Arboriculturists or Chartered Foresters to the betterment of forestry on a community, regional, […]

Climate, community, forestry and farming at the heart of Scotland’s Finest Woods 2024

Scotland’s Finest Woods Awards are back for 2024 after a wonderful celebration in 2023. And this year four key areas form the focus of the prestigious Scotland’s Finest Woods Awards – climate, community, forestry and farming. The environment is central to everything the awards are about and the competition for the Climate Change Champion Trophy […]

Institute Fellow awarded MBE in New Year Honours

The Institute is delighted that Tom Jenkins FICFor has been awarded the Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to the Forestry Sector in the New Year Honours 2024 list. Currently the Head of Forest Research in Wales, Tom’s long and distinguished career has led to a wealth of tree knowledge […]

Institute responds to farming scheme updates

The Institute of Chartered Foresters (ICF) welcomes the recent upgrade to farming schemes announced by the Rt Hon Steve Barclay MP on Thursday 4 January 2024. As the biggest update to the UK’s farming schemes since leaving the European Union, we’re pleased to see trees on farms moving up the agenda based on their wider benefits to business […]

Institute responds to National Wood Strategy for England

On 7 December 2023, the National Wood Strategy for England was launched at Confor’s UK Policy Conference in London, where lead author Tom Barnes from Vastern Timber discussed the strategy’s key points and next steps, and Naomi Matthiessen provided a response on behalf of Defra. Attending the conference on behalf of the Institute was our […]

Trailblazing apprenticeship programme for the forestry sector re-opens

Applications for the next cohort of the innovative Professional Forester Apprenticeship programme reopened on 2 December as part of National Tree Week. The programme, a partnership from the Forestry Commission, the University of Cumbria and the Institute of Chartered Foresters, offers a three-year, paid development opportunity for individuals from all backgrounds looking to kickstart their […]

New study led by Chartered Forester predicts catastrophic forest ecosystem collapse

An article published in the Institute’s Scientific journal, Forestry, has hit the headlines this week after the results from a recent horizon scanning exercise were published warning of the multiple emerging threats to woodlands, including tree disease and extreme weather, in the next 50 years. Funded by Forestry England, the study was led by Chartered […]