Trees and the Public Realm - Westminster City Council

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Appendix E - 4 Trees and the Public Realm (Draft) where there are deficits in provision. This strategy aims to maintain and increase the amount of wildlife habitat and biodiversity in the city. It also seeks to ensure that new developments contribute to Westminster’s open space network, by providing new open spaces (both public and private) and enhance existing spaces, including greening of small urban spaces where appropriate. The townscape guidance provided in Appendix B of this document is intended provides further guidance on where trees would be appropriate. The Metropolitan Views Draft SPD (October 2007) was produced by the City of Westminster to identify views of metropolitan importance and to explain the council's policies to protect such views. Local views are identified in conservation area audits which the council is producing for each conservation area. As noted in Section 5 of this document, important views need to be considered in the placement of trees into the townscape. The Metropolitan Views Draft SPD has been out to consultation but will be reviewed subject to the revised draft London View Management Framework SPG which is out to consultation until September 2009.
Trees and the Public Realm (Draft) Appendix F - 1 APPENDIX F TREES ON OTHER SITES WHICH AFFECT THE PUBLIC REALM Planting and landscaping in the public realm is commonly associated only with parks, squares, avenues and other public open spaces. Yet even in the densely developed area of central London, traditional townscape contains also a wealth of other green spaces. These include the grounds of institutions, publicly-assessable areas within major developments, communal gardens and even the cumulative effect of planting in long stretches of residential front and rear gardens. The principles contained in the body of this document also apply to these areas. This appendix provides brief discussion of some additional issues that should be considered in making planting decisions in these areas, however only insofar as these decisions impact on the public realm. As has been noted in the body of this document, this is not intended to cover the breadth of issues which can arise over privately-owned trees (such as tree subsidence, TPO assessment and the like). Tree planting on development sites As noted in Section 3 of this document, trees add value to development. However, the number of trees planted is less relevant than the quality and scale of the trees planted. It is the larger landscape species of trees that confer the greatest benefit. These benefits include: attractiveness, stature, creating a sense of place, assisting with way-finding and, crucially, for casting deep shade and cooling our buildings, public squares and meeting places in future. The principal aim should be “the right trees in the right places”, with the emphasis not on numbers of trees, but the inclusion of trees that are able to grow into specimens of quality and scale for that site. The council will, where appropriate, require suitable landscaping of developments that as a minimum maintains existing levels of amenity. This can be secured through the use of planning conditions and Section 106 agreements. The objective will be to enhance the amenity of the development and its environs through tree planting, and also to increase biodiversity. For the successful implementation of these policies, the council usually encourages designers, landowners and developers to incorporate planting and landscaping in new developments in a way that complements the historic character of Westminster. In certain large scale developments, however, it may be appropriate to incorporate tree planting as part of a contemporary setting. Street layouts, geometries and networks should aim to make the environment self-explanatory to all users, and features such as trees (in addition to others such as public art, planting, lighting and architectural style – see the Westminster Way for more details) can assist navigation and potentially reducing the need for cluttering signs. Street lighting should be planned as an integral part of the design of the street layout, and in conjunction with the location and anticipated growth of planting. The potential for planting to obscure lighting through growth should be considered when deciding what and where to plant.
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Trees and the Public Realm - Westminster City Council

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