The charity was set up as part of the Tree Warden Scheme, by BCC‘s Tree Officers in 2016. Birmingham TreePeople is now separate from the city council but works in partnership with them as well as many other organisations to meet our charitable aims.
In 2024 we were awarded significant funding from the National Lottery Community Fund which enabled us to transition from a volunteer-led organisations to an employee-led charity with a board of trustees who support our work.
What do Birmingham TreePeople do?
Gather Information
We used iTree software to survey the entire city to calculate the benefits of the urban forest. This is a big task that was completed in 2023. This kind of citizen science research (like our street tree survey, iTree Eco, etc.) helps to develop better records for trees in the City of Birmingham. In particular, under the guidelines and to meet targets of our Urban Forest Master Plan.
Our Urban Forest Volunteers also look out for pests and diseases, vandalism or damage, amongst other problems, on city trees to alert tree officers. They also spot and report planning breaches.
Practical Green Projects
Urban Forest Volunteers organise activities in their local parks and open spaces. These workshops and community events include, but are not limited to: Tree Planting | Tree Care | Pruning | Mulching | Nursery Links | Tree Identification Walks | Arts & Crafts Activities | Tree Trails | Street Tree Surveying | Treemembrance
Liaison & Community Engagement
Urban Forest Volunteers link with local Councillors over issues affecting trees in their wards, using communication skills and knowledge. This helps local councils support their neighborhoods with better resources and information.
Urban Forest Volunteers support landowners over the trees on their land, in order to preserve residential, urban trees. Trees within housing areas are of great importance for increasing tree benefits to improve communities.
Thanks to our liaison skills, community engagement, our policies and projects, BTP gained the status of Tree City of the World in 2019. This is great achievement for our non-profit organisation, and will continue our work with greater determination.
If you’re curious about our the annual reports and accounts as a charity and non-profit organisation, you can follow this link to the Charity Commission website for more information. Birmingham TreePeople, Charity number: 1190536