Ancient felled oak tree was healthy, report finds

An ancient oak tree felled beside a Toby Carvery restaurant in north London was healthy and showed little evidence it needed to be cut down, according to a report released by the Forestry Commission.

A site inspection found no indications the 500-year-old tree in Whitewebbs Park, Enfield, posed any danger.

Aerial and ground photographs taken before the felling in April showed it was not overhanging the car park or any target areas, and a survey last year described it as a "fine specimen", with images showing healthy foliage and new leaf growth.

Mitchell and Butlers, who own Toby Carvery, originally said contractors had cut down the tree on health and safety grounds.

The report said inspectors also found no signs of major tree diseases and noted the trunk was largely intact, aside from cavity which showed evidence of wildlife living there.

The work carried out on the ancient oak left only a high stump and removed most of the crown - the reproductive part of the tree.

Dr Ed Pyne, senior conservation adviser at the Woodland Trust, said the probabilities of the tree surviving now were "so slim".

"If I had to put like a gut feeling on it, I would say like less than one percent chance," he said.

"I visited the tree in the aftermath and there was absolutely no doubt in my mind the tree was very much alive."

Describing the historical importance of the tree, Pyne said it had been around since the "beginning of the gunpowder plot - an integral part of British culture".

Russell Miller, a campaigner for Guardians of Whitewebbs - a local community campaign group in Enfield formed to protect Whitewebbs Park - said the tree was ecologically significant due to it being an irreplaceable habitat.

"If you were to compare ecologically Sycamore Gap (a 120-year-old tree that was illegally cut down) with this tree, this tree is worth 1,000 Sycamore Gaps, more than that.

"The Sycamore Gap was a relatively young tree, which isn't in any way to undermine the significance of the loss to the people who valued that tree.

"All I'm trying to do is help people understand is the scale of this destruction."

The trust's Living Legends petition, which aims to secure such status for heritage trees and prevent similar incidents from happening, has attracted more than 100,000 signatures and was handed in to Downing Street in November.

Tim Leaver, Enfield Council's deputy leader, described the tree as an "irreplaceable part of Enfield's natural heritage" and said it "was felled without the council's knowledge or consent, in clear breach of the lease governing the site".

The council said it had reported the felling to the Met Police as criminal damage, but the force is understood to have closed its inquiry, deeming it a civil matter.

The Forestry Commission panel reviewing the case concluded that issuing an advisory letter to Mitchells & Butlers was the most suitable response as it said no offence had been committed under the Forestry Act.

The council has previously said Mitchells & Butlers, the company behind the restaurant, had not "meaningfully engaged" with the authority following the incident or taken steps to repair the damage.

The council has since begun forfeiture proceedings and is seeking to evict the restaurant over what it described as serious breaches of the lease.

The authority added the firm should apologise, pay reparations for "irreversible damage" and cover the council's costs, arguing that residents "deserved accountability".

A spokesperson for Toby Carvery said: "We are unable to comment due to ongoing legal proceedings."

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