Westbury to be included in a priority area of new national forest

Westbury has been included in a priority area in the creation of a major new national forest, the first of its kind in 30 years. 

The Western Forest will see over 20 million trees planted across the west of England with over 6,000 acres of new woodland across Wiltshire, Somerset, Gloucestershire, the Cotswolds and the Mendips. One of five priority areas will cover western Wiltshire, running from north of Chippenham to south of Warminster, taking in Westbury and the surrounding countryside (see map).

“This is a very exciting opportunity for the town council, and we will be keen to be involved,” said town clerk Deborah Urch. “As Wiltshire Council has agreed to transfer the freehold of much of the open space in Westbury, we are well positioned to support this project, subject to the relevant criteria. The opportunity will be discussed further at an upcoming meeting of our Climate Emergency and Management of Services Committee.

“The town council declared a Climate Emergency in 2020, with one of our key actions being to increase tree cover across the town. We have already been working towards this goal through planting initiatives at Vivash, Penleigh, and Grassacres Parks and we have recently secured a grant from the Woodland Trust for 420 mixed trees.

“Our lead ranger has carefully selected a diverse range of species to further enhance Westbury’s green spaces through the Woodland Trust’s Free Trees for Schools and Communities programme.”

Spearheaded by the Forest of Avon, one of England’s Community Forests, and supported by £7.5million of government funding, the Western Forest is the result of a successful regional partnership with contributions from more than 40 organisations including the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust.

Safia Gilder-Hodgson, partnerships manager at the Forest of Avon Trust, said work on the forest would begin this year, with tree planting starting as early as December 2025.

“We’re really excited to get started and create something big and bold for nature – a new accessible community forest of the future,” she said. “We hope to work with the local community – groups, volunteers, schools, businesses, landowners, and the Wildlife Trust – to deliver something amazing.”

Parvis Khansari, Wiltshire Council corporate director for place, said, “We are pleased to be a partner with the winning Western Forest bid and will work closely with the newly-formed Western Forest Team along with other partners to ensure that the right trees are planted in the right place for the right reasons. This will build on the work that we have already undertaken over the past two years supporting tree planting with landowners and communities across Wiltshire and in partnership with Swindon Borough Council’s Great Western Community Forest.

“Whilst there are currently no detailed plans regarding locations for tree planting proposals under this new initiative, where appropriate, tree planting will be considered in towns such as Westbury.”   

For more information about the Western Forest or to get involved in local initiatives, visit the Forest of Avon Trust website – https://forestofavon.org/western-forest/.