Councils across Lancashire respond to tree death
The rough sleeper, who was in his 40s, was pronounced dead on Monday
No issues had previously been identified with a tree in Blackpool which killed a homeless man after one of its branches fell on his tent.
The not-yet-unnamed rough sleeper, who was in his 40s, was pronounced dead after being discovered in Revoe Park shortly before 5am on Monday (15 September).
The tree was one of those given a visual check each month by Blackpool Council – which owns the site – because of its location in an area of “high footfall”.
The council has confirmed that no concerns had been raised about the specimen either during its recent inspections, nor in the last town-wide tree survey, which took place back in 2022.
Lancashire Police said on Monday that the man’s death was not being treated as suspicious and that a file will be passed to the coroner in due course.
'Plan to change'
Meanwhile, none of Lancashire’s councils have indicated that they plan to change how often they check their trees following Monday’s tragedy – which is the third tree-related death in the county in less than a year.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service approached all 15 local authorities – and of the 11 who responded, none said they intended to rethink the frequency of their tree inspection regimes.
The vast majority inspect their trees on a rolling basis, with those in the busiest areas being assessed more often than others.
Councils are only responsible for trees on land they own or control.
In the case of Lancashire County Council, the authority takes care of most of those within defined highway areas in its patch, which excludes Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen.
However, arrangements are in place which see some district authorities take on responsibility for roadside trees.
Those same districts – Burnley, Chorley, Fylde, Hyndburn, Lancaster, Pendle, Preston, Ribble Valley, Rossendle, South Ribble, West Lancashire and Wyre – manage trees in the likes of parks and cemeteries.
In the standalone Blackpool and Blackburn with Darwen council areas, the two authorities are responsible for all trees on council-owned land and within the borders of the highway.
Last month, 32-year-old Madia Kauser was killed by a falling tree branch while walking in Blackburn’s Witton Country Park with her husband and two children.
In December 2024, Paul Fiddler died after a tree fell on his van while he was travelling along the A59 in Longton, close to Lancashire Constabulary’s headquarters.
TREE CHECKS
Below is each council’s response to being asked whether they had any plans to change their tree inspection strategies following the death of the man in Blackpool this week, together with publicly available details of their existing policies.
Lancashire County Council:
Response: “We take the safety of the public incredibly seriously and, as such, in recent years, we have expanded our tree inspection regime.
“We encourage landowners to check the safety of their trees to see if they pose a risk to the public highways.”
Tree policy: To mitigate the risk of a tree or branch falling and causing injury or damage to as low a level as practically possible, the inspection of all trees growing on county council land growing within falling distance of a vehicular highway – and trees within the highway extents – will be subject to cyclical inspection every 24 months.
Trees on actively operational land regularly used by public or invitees of the county council or county council employees, but are outside of falling distance from the vehicular highway will be inspected on a three-year cycle. Trees on county council owned land not actively operational as above will be inspected on a five-year cycle,
There are two types of tree safety inspections at the county council. Tree surveyors from the tree management team will carry out pedestrian inspections of all trees and groups of trees across the county council’s estate. Highway safety inspectors will carry out inspections for trees within the highway and trees on adjoining land near the highway as part of their highway safety inspection regimes.
Blackburn with Darwen:
Response: None received
Tree policy: Trees will be monitored and managed with a view to retaining them for as long as possible without compromising public safety. In some cases, valuable trees, e.g., ancient and veteran trees, are fenced in order to prevent public access where this may be dangerous, and/or ensure the continued health of the tree.
Council trees are surveyed, typically on a three-to-five-year cycle, depending on their location. In some cases, trees will be inspected annually. Urgent and priority works noted during inspection are carried out as soon as practical.
Blackpool:
Response: “We follow the National Tree Safety Group’s risk management approach to tree management. Our last town-wide tree survey was carried out in 2022. The next survey is planned for 2026.
“Visual tree assessments are carried out every month in areas of high footfall. If any elevated signs of risk are identified, appropriate action is taken.
“We are awaiting further information to understand the circumstances that led to the man killed on Monday sleeping in the park. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this terribly sad time.”
Tree policy: we have developed a comprehensive approach to tree management. The tree services team works to put in place the town’s tree strategy, preserve the town’s tree stock and apply a sustainable tree management regime.
Burnley:
Response: “The council undertakes a range of inspections of trees in parks and green spaces and most green spaces staff are trained to undertake visual inspections, so that we can actively monitor the condition of trees and we have site-based staff in most of our parks.
“When we receive advance notifications of severe storms from the Met Office, we put up notices advising the public to avoid walking in the most popular locations such as Towneley park woodlands. The current period of windy weather did not fall into this category.”
Tree policy: The council is not expected to guarantee that a tree is safe. It is required to take reasonable care as could be expected by a reasonable and prudent landowner.
Trees and groups of trees for which the council is responsible have been categorised in relation to the risk they represent: high-use zones: areas such as well-used areas of main parks, trees in open spaces close to busy roads, trees next to car parks, children’s play areas and woodland footpaths; low-use zones such as woodland areas away from the footpaths, infrequently used areas of parks and open spaces and inaccessible areas.
“Parks and green spaces are formally inspected twice each year and there is a written record kept of the inspection, which includes a visual inspection of trees.
The council manages trees in accordance with guidance in the National Tree Safety Group’s document ‘Common Sense Tree Management’.
Chorley:
Response: None received
Tree policy: trees inspected every 15 months in areas such as busy roads, car parks, and play areas; every 36 months on less busy roads, footpaths, woodlands and quieter park areas; and every 60 months in all other infrequently used areas.
Inspections can be in the form of visual checks by a competent person; formal, detailed assessment of tree health and hazards; or detailed specialist techniques used for complex cases.
Fylde:
Response: “Fylde Council takes public safety very seriously and operates a risk-based tree inspection regime in line with national guidance, including recommendations from the National Tree Safety Group and the Health and Safety Executive.
“Our approach prioritises areas with the highest public use, such as highways, parks, and other high-risk locations. Trees are inspected by qualified arboriculture professionals, and inspection frequency varies depending on factors such as location, species, age and condition.
“Where defects are identified, appropriate action is taken to manage risk, which may include pruning, monitoring, or removal where necessary. We also maintain a record of inspections and works carried out to ensure accountability and continuous improvement.
“While we cannot comment on incidents in other areas, we continually review our processes to ensure they remain effective and proportionate.”
Tree policy: No details readily available regarding inspection frequency.
Hyndburn:
Response: We have no plans to amend our tree inspection programme at this time.
Trees growing in pavements and on grass verges at the sides of the roads, within Hyndburn, are owned by Lancashire County Council.
Tree policy: The council has a limited annual maintenance budget for the maintenance of council owned trees; priority is therefore given to dangerous trees.
Lancaster:
Response: none received.
Tree policy: Trees are periodically inspected by one of the council’s technical officers to check on their condition and to identify whether any works are necessary to make them reasonably safe, which may include pruning or if whole tree removal depending on the problem and the relative value of the tree.
The cycle of re-inspection is determined by the location of the tree. For very high use areas such trees are inspected annually, whereas in little used areas trees are inspected every five years.
Pendle:
Response: “All trees within Pendle Council’s land holdings are inspected on a cyclical basis depending on the location of the trees. If they are next to a highway or a main parkland path, this is more frequent than trees within the middle of a woodland.
“These inspections are carried out by specialist independent arboriculture consultants who then produce risk rated reports for the council to act on accordingly.
“No changes are being made to our planned tree inspections at the moment.”
Tree policy: We proactively manage the trees we own – looking at both the risks and the benefits. Any complaints about our trees are recorded and prioritised.
Complaints that are dangerous or potentially dangerous are dealt with urgently – usually the same day or the next day. Other complaints are inspected within 20 working days.
We don’t cut trees down unless it’s absolutely necessary. Each individual case is carefully assessed. If we do have to cut a tree down, we plant a replacement tree.
Preston:
Response: “We do not propose to amend our inspection regimes. Open spaces with higher footfall, like Preston’s key parks, are inspected more frequently than other areas – and any issues identified are acted upon as soon as possible.”
Tree policy: tree inspections will be undertaken by an appropriately qualified arboriculturist and will involve a systematic risk assessment of each tree.
In order to manage tree risk, the council will undertake regular inspections of all trees that it owns. These will be planned in advance in a rolling programme. Trees in more sensitive locations will be inspected more often than those in less sensitive locations.
This will include an assessment of the likelihood that a failure could occur, the sensitivity of the surrounding context to harm, and the type and significance of harm that could occur in the event of a failure.
The council will carry out reactive inspections in response to specific events such as tree failures or storm damage.
Ribble Valley:
Response: "All trees on land belonging to the local authority are included in a rolling programme of risk assessments in accordance with legal requirements and standards.
“While zero risk from trees cannot be guaranteed, this process ensures that any potential risk is kept within HSE parameters for trees in the public domain.”
Tree policy: No details readily available regarding inspection frequency.
Rossendale:
Response: None received.
Tree policy: Pruning will only normally be undertaken where one or more of the following conditions apply: there is a health and safety risk; to prevent physical damage to buildings; the work accords with the latest version of British Standard 3998; the work will not be harmful to the tree’s public amenity value; the work is necessary to improve the growth of adjacent, better quality trees.
South Ribble:
Response: None received
Tree policy: Trees inspected every 15 months in areas such as busy roads, car parks, and play areas; every 36 months on less busy roads, footpaths, woodlands and quieter park areas; and every 60 months in all other infrequently used areas.
Inspections can be in the form of visual checks by a competent person; formal, detailed assessment of tree health and hazards; or detailed specialist techniques used for complex cases.
West Lancashire:
Response: “We are currently undergoing a full stock survey on all trees under our responsibility across the borough. We triage all complaints or concerns from members of the public and deal with any urgent cases as appropriate.
“We periodically undertake tree management policy reviews to make sure we are in line with legislation and British Standards.
Tree policy: Where a council-owned tree is in such a condition that it poses a very high risk to residents or property and it has been identified as an emergency situation,
Trees in public open spaces are managed according to their location which includes streets, grass verges and parks.
Other council trees are managed in a more informal arrangement. These are managed through service requests to the council and outside of a planned tree management and maintenance programme.
Trees in council ownership which are growing in areas of high public use are inspected for safety according to the level of public use in the area immediately surrounding the tree.
Wyre:
Response: “We are aware of the recent incident in Blackpool and our thoughts are with those affected.
“Wyre Council operates a robust, risk-based tree management policy and is not currently reviewing its inspection regime. This includes regular surveys, prioritised works by approved contractors and in-house support where needed.
“We continue to do all we can to reduce the risk of tree failure on council-managed land and adopted highways, including advising private landowners when necessary.
“Public safety remains our priority and we continue to implement our policy to manage risks effectively.”
Tree policy: Our trees are managed sustainably with the emphasis on attending promptly to hazardous trees and those affecting properties.