D3: Area of woodland in England

Short Description

This indicator shows change in the area of broadleaved and conifer woodland in England. Woodland, as defined for the National Forest Inventory, is land under stands of trees with a minimum area of 0.5 hectares, a width of at least 20 metres, and a canopy cover of at least 20% or having the potential to achieve this. The definition relates to land use, rather than land cover, so integral open space and areas of felled trees that are awaiting restocking (replanting) are included as woodland. Woodland is a key natural capital asset that provides many natural capital benefits, such as the provision of timber and other wood products, carbon storage, habitats for wildlife, and opportunities for exercise and recreation.

Readiness and links to data

Data on the area of woodland are published annually in Forest Research’s Forestry Statistics along with information on the data sources and methodology. Additional commentary on recent trends and new planting of woodland and trees in England is provided in the Forestry Commission’s quarterly Key Performance Indicators.

Indicator components

Figure Table

Figure D3: Area of woodland in England, 1980 to 2022

Source

Forestry Commission,Forest Research, England woodland area

Unit of Measurement

Million hectares

Footnotes

Due to rounding, areas of conifer and broadleaf woodland shown here may not sum exactly to the total area of woodland in England published in Forest Research’s Forestry Statistics.

The timeseries for this indicator was shortened in the 2022 update of the source publication; as a result, it now begins in 1990 rather than 1980.

Data for 2012 and 2019 include cumulative updates based on analysis of remote sensing data.

Data for 2020 and 2021 were revised in the 2023 update of this indicator.

There is a general assumption that woodlands that have been clearfelled will be restocked. These areas are classified as ‘woodlands in transition’ until there is evidence (through fieldwork, satellite imagery or aerial photography) that the areas have been replanted or have regenerated. As natural regeneration can take some time to establish, some areas can remain as woodlands in transition for more than 10 years and there can be considerable time lags between the felling of woodland to create open habitats and the designation of that area as non-woodland. It is likely this leads to some overestimation of the area of conifer woodland.

The area of woodland statistics are based on annual updates to both the National Forest Inventory woodland map based on remote sensing and also administrative data on new planting of woodland. The split between conifer and broadleaf in the woodland map data is based on more accurate assessments of stocked areas from fieldwork data.

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Table D3: Area of woodland in England, 1980 to 2022

Year	Broadleaves	Conifers
1990	0.86	0.35
1991	0.86	0.35
1992	0.86	0.35
1993	0.87	0.35
1994	0.87	0.35
1995	0.88	0.35
1996	0.88	0.35
1997	0.89	0.35
1998	0.89	0.35
1999	0.89	0.35
2000	0.90	0.35
2001	0.90	0.35
2002	0.91	0.35
2003	0.91	0.35
2004	0.92	0.35
2005	0.92	0.35
2006	0.93	0.35
2007	0.93	0.35
2008	0.93	0.35
2009	0.93	0.35
2010	0.94	0.35
2011	0.94	0.35
2012	0.96	0.34
2013	0.96	0.34
2014	0.96	0.34
2015	0.97	0.34
2016	0.97	0.34
2017	0.97	0.34
2018	0.97	0.34
2019	0.97	0.34
2020	0.98	0.34
2021	0.98	0.34
2022	0.98	0.34

Source

Forestry Commission,Forest Research, England woodland area

Unit of Measurement

Million hectares

Footnotes

Due to rounding, areas of conifer and broadleaf woodland shown here may not sum exactly to the total area of woodland in England published in Forest Research’s Forestry Statistics.

The timeseries for this indicator was shortened in the 2022 update of the source publication; as a result, it now begins in 1990 rather than 1980.

Data for 2012 and 2019 include cumulative updates based on analysis of remote sensing data.

Data for 2020 and 2021 were revised in the 2023 update of this indicator.

There is a general assumption that woodlands that have been clearfelled will be restocked. These areas are classified as ‘woodlands in transition’ until there is evidence (through fieldwork, satellite imagery or aerial photography) that the areas have been replanted or have regenerated. As natural regeneration can take some time to establish, some areas can remain as woodlands in transition for more than 10 years and there can be considerable time lags between the felling of woodland to create open habitats and the designation of that area as non-woodland. It is likely this leads to some overestimation of the area of conifer woodland.

The area of woodland statistics are based on annual updates to both the National Forest Inventory woodland map based on remote sensing and also administrative data on new planting of woodland. The split between conifer and broadleaf in the woodland map data is based on more accurate assessments of stocked areas from fieldwork data.

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Trend description for D3

The total area of woodland in England has increased from 1.21 million hectares in 1990 to 1.32 million hectares in 2022, equating to an increase from 9.2% to 10.2% of the land area of England. This growth has been driven by an increase in broadleaf woodland. The area of conifer woodland in England has remained relatively static over the last 33 years based on the area of new planting. However, an update is expected to March 2022, based on new remote sensing imagery, which will account for conifer woodland converted to open ground priority habitats and Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites restored to native woodland.

Assessment of change

The observed increases in the area of woodland in England over the short and medium term are assessed as ‘little or no change’. This is because it would take a large area of additional woodland cover to reach the 3% increase needed for the ‘improvement’ category to be assigned. There has, however, been an increase (improvement) over the long term. This assessment does not consider whether any improvement is on a sufficient scale for meeting targets.

Change since 2018 has also been assessed. There has been ‘little or no change’ in woodland cover since 2018.

Further information on this assessment, along with details on the methodology, is provided in the Assessment background page. Summaries by 25 Year Environment Plan goal and information on indicator links are presented in the Assessment results pages.

Table D3: Assessment of change

Component	Subcomponent	Period	Date range	Percentage change	Smoothing function	Assessment of change
D3	Total woodland	Short term	2017 to 2022	1.22	Unsmoothed	Little or no change
D3	Total woodland	Medium term	2012 to 2022	1.93	Unsmoothed	Little or no change
D3	Total woodland	Long term	1990 to 2022	9.79	Unsmoothed	Improvement

Note that percentage change in Table D3 change refers to the difference seen from the first to last year in the specified date range.

Indicator Metadata

Headline indicator status

Not applicable

Primary goal in the 25 Year Environment Plan

Thriving plants and wildlife

Enhancing beauty, heritage and engagement with the natural environment

Relevant goal(s) in the 25 Year Environment Plan

Thriving plants and wildlife

Enhancing beauty, heritage and engagement with the natural environment

Using resources from nature more sustainably and efficiently

Relevant target(s) in the 25 Year Environment Plan

Creating or restoring 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat outside the protected site network, focusing on priority habitats as part of a wider set of land management changes providing extensive benefits

Increasing woodland in England in line with our aspiration of 12% cover by 2060: this would involve planting 180,000 hectares by end of 2042

Position in the natural capital framework

Condition of assets - land

Condition of assets - species and ecological communities

Related reporting commitments

Equivalent data at UK level are reported to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation for its regular Forest Resources Assessment, and to Forest Europe for publication in the State of Europe’s Forests

Geographical Scope

England

Status of indicator development

Final

First Reported

2019

Last Updated

2023

Latest Data

2022