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 […]
Summit to focus minds on woodland creation process
Industry leaders from the forestry and land management sectors will meet in Perthshire next month to agree additional actions to boost the creation of new woodlands in Scotland. The Woodland Creation Summit will be chaired by Rural Affairs Secretary Mairi Gougeon and held on Tuesday 12 December at the Battleby Conference Centre. During the day […]
UK Forestry Standard review – publication of the fifth edition
The fifth edition of the UK Forestry Standard (UKFS) was published on 3 October, following an extensive review process. The aim of the review was to ensure the UKFS remains upto date, balanced in terms of the social, economic and environmental principles of sustainable forest management, and applicable across the UK. It was overseen by […]
Call for productive forestry & forest carbon cycling experts on Defra group
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is inviting applications for two new members on the Trees and Woodlands Scientific Advisory Group (TaW-SAG), an advisory, Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB). TaW-SAG was established in 2021 and provides independent expert advice, challenge and scientific support to Defra specialists and policy makers in matters related to […]
Institute President & Executive Director meet with Mairi Gougeon MSP
On 21 September, the Institute’s President, Geraint Richards MVO FICFor, and Executive Director, Louise Simpson, were invited to meet with Scotland’s Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands, Mairi Gougeon. During the meeting, Geraint and Louise highlighted the broad range of tree professionals that the Institute represents, and how the Institute is a crucial organisation […]
