Engaging with Scottish Forestry at the start of Step 1.2 and, before beginning stakeholder engagement, will help identify and agree:

• key issues
• survey and assessment requirements
• relevant stakeholders
• appropriate engagement methods

The applicant should detail the surveys and assessments being undertaken and set out their proposals for stakeholder engagement including:

• suggested stakeholders
• methods and timing of engagement for discussion with Scottish Forestry

The Case Officer may also be able to provide information on neighbouring or similar sites that the applicant may need totake into account when considering the potential for cumulative effect. 

The applicant should capture issues or opportunities raised by Scottish Forestry in the issues log.

Stakeholder engagement is a key part of due diligence and provides an opportunity to explain the applicant’s plans and objectives and take account of stakeholders’ views.

Stakeholder engagement is an informative process that helps to identify the key factors that should be considered within the woodland creation proposal. It seeks to avoid any unexpected issues arising during the later public consultation.

It is the applicant’s responsibility to identify relevant stakeholders and engage with them but the proposed approach should be discussed with Scottish Forestry in advance. 

Ensure that all neighbours and adjacent landowners who may be affected by the proposal are identified and given an opportunity to provide comments.

Engagement provides the opportunity for stakeholders to:

• share knowledge
• raise issues
• highlight opportunities related to the specifics of the proposal, so that they can be properly considered during the development of the proposal

A range of common issues is Set out in Appendix x of this document. 

Views on established forestry-related standards, guidance or national policy are not normally within the parameters for consideration in a specific proposal. 

Where these views are shared during the application process, Scottish Forestry may note the points made for future reviews of the relevant standards, guidance or policies.

Scottish Forestry’s focus will remain on considering the individual proposal and compliance with:

• the UK Forestry Standard (UKFS)
• the EIA regulations
• grant eligibility criteria

Stakeholders are strongly encouraged to raise issues or concerns or highlight potential opportunities at due diligence (Step 1.2) that these can be fully considered along with other constraints and issues identified. 

Where issues are raised at a later stage, they can often be harder to address. and as a result points raised later may have less influence on the final design proposal. 

Agencies have agreed when they will provide advice on forestry proposals, including:

• NatureScot
• the Scottish Environment Protection Agency
• Historic Environment Scotland

If in doubt whether to engage with any of these organisations at this stage, applicants should seek advice from Scottish Forestry. 

Once the applicant has finalised their approach to stakeholder engagement, the applicant should keep a Stakeholder Engagement Record (the stakeholders contacted) and this should form part of the proposal when submitted. 

When engaging with stakeholders, applicants should make it clear that they will be sharing responses with Scottish Forestry to inform assessment of the proposal. 

Scottish Forestry would not normally expect to receive stakeholders’ personal contact details such as email address and phone numbers and these should be omitted from returns.

Information for Stakeholders

It is important that the information given to stakeholders regarding the proposal is clear and understandable to non-foresters. 

Applicants should explain that they are looking for information and comments on the specifics of the proposal and set out the process and expected time scales for both engagement and the proposal application process. 

Different stakeholders may require different approaches or levels of information but in all cases the approach should be proportionate to the size, complexity or sensitivity of the proposal. 

At initial engagement, applicants should provide stakeholders with an opportunity to:

• comment on what they know about the site or how they use the site
• highlight issues which the proposal should consider

As a minimum, at the start of initial stakeholder engagement, the applicant should provide:

• concept/opportunity and constraints map or for smaller or simple woodland creation proposals, a basic map showing location and proposal outline (the map should complement the proposal summary and issues log)

  (See Key Documents at pX) 

• proposal Summary

  (See Key Documents at pX)

• an early issues log detailing key issues and sensitivities and proposed surveys (As outlined in Step 1.1.) - this is not required for proposals less than 5ha

Applicants should give sufficient information to allow stakeholders to consider the issues and be clear what additional surveys are planned. 

Where proposals show measures to avoid or prevent negative impacts, applicants should explain why they consider these measures sufficient. 

Sharing the proposal summary, concept map and issues log with stakeholders gives them the opportunity to see what is already being considered and what factors have been identified. 

Stakeholders can then comment on what is proposed and highlight any additional factors that had not been identified.

Where information such as site surveys or assessments are available at initial engagement then these should be shared with stakeholders. 

For large, complex or sensitive proposals, the applicant should consider creating a webpage for their proposal, making documents more accessible and providing increased visibility to stakeholders. 

It may also be appropriate to provide access to a full issues log, for example by hosting it on a website (subject to any consideration of sensitive data).

The approach to stakeholder engagement will need to take into account of the stakeholders involved e.g. people and local communities, and the size, complexity and sensitivities associated with the woodland creation proposal.

The approach may need to be adjusted if additional stakeholders or significant additional issues are identified during the application process. 

Where a meeting or a drop-in event is to be held this should take place early in the process to allow interested parties sufficient time to formally comment on the proposal after the event.

As highlighted above, within 6 weeks of the initial period of stakeholder engagement ending, applicants should provide stakeholders and Scottish Forestry with a summary of the:

• engagement undertaken
• issues identified
• comments received

This should also explain how comments received during the engagement period will be considered when finalising the planting design. 

The feedback could be in the form of a summary letter/ map alongside the issues log (or simplified version of it). 

In some cases, further engagement with stakeholders on specific issues after the initial 12 week period may be required prior to the final design being submitted. 

In many cases, the applicant will not have reached the stage of completing a final design within that six week period. In those circumstances, the applicant must circulate an interim summary report addressing the points above instead. 

When surveys or other additional information becomes available, the applicant should update the issues log and recirculate it to stakeholders. 

Further comments or information from stakeholders should also be picked up in the log. 

As part of the continuing engagement process, stakeholders should be given a reasonable time to respond to additional information received:

• the applicant should provide Scottish Forestry with an updated stakeholder engagement record showing which stakeholders have replied, when they have sent the stakeholders their feedback from the initial engagement
• Scottish Forestry may ask for copies of individual stakeholder responses
• for some proposals, it may be useful for the applicant to provide Scottish Forestry with a map showing the location of neighbours and neighbouring landowners who have been contacted

See Scottish Forestry’s stakeholder engagement guidance for more information.

A woodland creation proposal is a plan for establishing new woodland on a specific area of land. It sets out:

• where trees will be planted or naturally regenerated
• the objectives for the woodland
• how the design will deliver sustainable forest management and social, environmental and forestry requirements
• the opportunities that can be realised from woodland creation
• how any potential impacts on people, habitats, landscapes, heritage features, or other land uses will be avoided or managed 

The proposal is supported by site assessments, surveys where required and engagement with stakeholders such as local communities, neighbours, public bodies and other interested parties.

This process, led by the applicant, is called carrying out “due diligence”. 

The process should be proportionate to the complexity and sensitivity of the proposal.

The proposal must demonstrate compliance with the UK Forestry Standard (UKFS) and Sthe Stakeholder engagement guidance and, where applicable, meet the requirements for grant schemes, forestry Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), or the Woodland Carbon Code.

In summary, a woodland creation proposal provides the evidence and design information needed for Scottish Forestry to assess the proposal against the requirements above. Demonstrably following this guidance can speed up the application process by providing clear evidence of completion of due diligence, which is proportionate to the proposal.

If you are farmer, landowner, or forestry agent looking to create any new woodland in Scotland you should follow this guidance. If you are interested in influencing a woodland creation proposal that is in development, this guidance will help you understand the process and how you can get involved.

This guidance is applicable whether you are proposing woodland creation by planting or natural regeneration.

The woodland creation proposal process places an emphasis on quality and accuracy. Woodland creation proposals produced from superficial survey or poor analysis of information are unlikely to be progressed without further work by the applicant. 

Scottish Forestry recommends that applicants engage the services of a professional forestry agent to help prepare their woodland creation proposals. 

Forestry agents will often need to seek other expert advice on issues such as ecology, landscape and the historic environment. 

Public Access 

Woodland creation proposals must make provision for public access:

• where it has been customary
• where there is local interest
• along all forest roads (private ways)

The management of public access in woodlands must be in line with the Scottish Outdoor Access Code.

Why tree health is important

Healthy trees, forests and woodlands provide us with lots of ecological, social and economic benefits. 

Pests and diseases are an important and natural part of environmental cycles. 

However, lots of factors can worsen the impact of pests or diseases. For example:

• some trees may be genetically predisposed to infections
• damage to protective bark (caused by browsing or machinery) releases chemical signals that attract pests or diseases to the wound site, where infection is now easier
• environmental stress, such as drought or waterlogging, can increase risk of infection while weakening tree defences
• low species and genetic diversity helps pests or diseases adapt and overcome those defences
  • this is a bit like using the same simple password for lots of different accounts - helping hackers to steal your information

These factors are well known to foresters, who use lots of different techniques to mitigate them in line with the UK Forestry Standard. 

These include:

• training staff and contractors
• managing deer
• matching tree species and genetic provenances to local site types 

The UK Forestry Standard (5th edition)

The way we live has increased opportunities for the introduction of new pests and diseases to Great Britain.

Consider the way we now purchase different types of goods online.  

This means we are transporting a greater volume and variety of commodities straight to the consumers door.  

It is much harder to check if these goods are from safe pest free places or to trace them if a pest or disease is found.

With that, the risk of new pests and diseases increases.

Our trees also can’t adapt their defences quickly enough. At the same time, they are more susceptible, being under increased environmental stress.

As a result, we are seeing more outbreaks of pests and diseases that are also more severe. Impacts include:

• higher tree mortality
• poorer timber quality
• more safety risks

We all have a role to play to stop, contain, or manage these impacts and keep our forests healthy.

Own or manage woodlands?

Discover ways to prevent and prepare for tree pests and diseases.

Prevent pests and diseases

Visiting woodlands? 

Learn more about biosecurity and resources for tree pest and disease identification.

Protect trees – report pests and disease

Keep your shoes, equipment, pets, bikes, and vehicles clean to prevent the spread of tree pests and diseases. Report any suspected pest or disease symptoms seen in Scotland to TreeAlert.

Keep it clean

Help keep our forests and woodlands healthy. 

Always check your kit is clean before walking (with or without a dog) or cycling in forests and woodlands.

Visiting and using woodlands

Find out about other preventative steps forest owners and managers can take to stop pest and disease introductions.

Prevent pests and diseases

Don’t risk bringing plant pests and diseases into the UK. When travelling abroad, leave plants, seeds, flowers, fruit and vegetables behind. 

This new video animation explains the risks of bringing animal and plant products into Great Britain. 

It highlights the potentially devastating impacts that contaminated products can have on farming communities and the environment. 

Report suspicious symptoms on any tree in Scotland to TreeAlert using the general enquiry webform.

Use TreeAlert (Forest Research website)

The web form asks for:

• your contact details
• the location of the sighting
• clear photographs of the affected tree(s) in context and the symptoms

For more information on what to include in your report, visit the ‘TreeAlert - what to do page’.

What do you need to make your report (Forest Research website)

Once you submit your report, diagnosticians at Forest Research will review it. They may contact you to request additional details.

Any suspected findings of regulated pests or pathogens will be sent to our Tree Health Officers for follow-up.

Use the Observatree resource library to find free:

• symptom guides
• fact sheets
• training materials
• and much more

Field identification guides (Observatree website)

Track down Observatree’s Host of the Month.

Can you find this month’s pest or disease and score top marks in the quiz?

Contact the Forest Research Tree Health Diagnostic and Advisory Service.

Tree Health Diagnostic and Advisory Service (Forest Research website)

The service covers trees wherever they grow including:

• woods
• farmland
• shelterbelts
• urban areas
• nurseries
• Christmas tree plantations

Charges may apply. 

Tree Health Diagnostic and Advisory Service Charges (Forest Research website)

Consult the Forest Research pest and disease resource library.

Pest and disease resources (Forest Research website)

The Forest Research ‘tree health learning pathway for citizens’ gives guidance for every age and ability to develop knowledge and skills for tree health.

Tree Health Learning Pathway for Citizens (Forest Research website)

Members of the Royal Society of Biology can apply to join the Plant Health Professional Register. 

Plant Health Professional Register (Royal Society of Biology website)

As well as the Royal Society of Biology there are other organisations that sometimes offer:

• tree pest and disease identification courses
• funding for student research projects on plant health

Note that these lists are not exhaustive.  They are not an endorsement by Scottish Forestry of the content or selection criteria (for which we have no responsibility). 

Always check our website for the latest tree health regulations.

Organisations offering tree health training courses include:

• Arboricultural Association
• Institute for Chartered Foresters
• Royal Scottish Forestry Society

Bursaries for student research projects on plant health are sometimes offered by:

• British Society for Plant Pathology
• Scottish Forestry Trust

1. The origins of Forestry and Water Scotland Initiative

The Forest and Water Scotland Initiative was originally set up to bring together resources, forest owners, forest managers and practitioners to follow good forestry practice to improve the water environment. 

The original Initiative members were:

• Confor
• Forestry Commission Scotland (now Scottish Forestry)
• Forest Enterprise (now Forest and Land Scotland)
• Forestry Contractors Association
• Scottish Government
• Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA)
• Scottish Natural Heritage (now NatureScot)
• Scottish Land and Estates

The Initiative achieved its goals of producing: 

• the Know the Rules Booklet operational guidance
• providing input to the UKFS Practice Guide on Managing forest operations to protect the water environment
• provide input to other water related guidance
• producing videos and training workshops 

Since these goals were completed, the Initiative stopped meeting as it was no longer needed. 

The website remained active via Confor’s website to allow continued use of the useful materials produced.

What is happening now?

Scottish Forestry have consulted previous members and conducted a review.

This highlighted a need for a refreshed forestry and water based group to bring together policy, government agencies and the sector. The Forestry and Water Group has been initiated.

The Forestry and Water Scotland Initiative website has been moved to the Scottish Forestry website. 

The resource documents listed on the original website, which remain relevant, have therefore been made available. They include:

• 'Know the Rules' Booklet
  • a larger size 'Know the Rules' booklet
  • FAQs on KTR booklet
• use of insecticides for the management of large pine weevil
• groundwater dependent terrestrial ecosystems

The remaining documents and videos have not been carried over due to them being superseded by new legislation or guidance.

Plan for sharing a map of D. micans in Scotland to aid reporting. Drafted, Katy Dainton, March 2026. 

Aim: to encourage Dm reporting from across Scotland 

• SF to create a Dm 10km presence / absence map for Scotland
• Squares will be colour-coded based on first finding to show progression of beetle across Scotland • Update annually in April
• Publish on SF website – link to / from FR webpage/s - Great spruce bark beetle (Dendroctonus micans) - Forest Research and Management of great spruce bark beetle - Forest Research Accompanying text:
• The great spruce bark beetle (Dendroctonus micans) is an invasive pest in the UK that feeds on, and can kill, spruce trees.
• It was first detected in southern Scotland in 2003, having gradually expanded northwards from its establishment in England and Wales during the 1970s and 1980s.
• 2015 is the earliest year shown on the map as the year Forestry Commission Scotland began compiling the annual dataset from field survey reports.
• Forest Research operates a biological control programme in which the specialist predatory beetle Rhizophagus grandis is reared in the laboratory and released at sites infested with D. micans.
• The aim of this programme is to reduce damage where D. micans is already present and to slow its spread into areas that remain free of the pest.
• Although the programme has significantly delayed the northward expansion of D. micans, the beetle continues to spread, leaving a large area of spruce still at risk.
• Any suspected sightings of D. micans in Scotland should be reported through Tree Alert, after which Scottish Forestry will carry out a site survey.
• Forest Research will then review the site information and determine whether it qualifies for inclusion in the Rhizophagus release programme.
• To support the programme, please visit [add link to Confor funding page – need to check with Richard].

Bark beetles are insects which bore into tree bark to lay their eggs. The larvae then feed on the inner bark of the tree.

In a healthy forest bark beetles are an important part of the ecosystem helping to decompose trees and providing food for other wildlife.

The two invasive conifer bark beetles we’re worried about

These species are not native to Scotland but can survive here and could cause widespread damage:

• Ips typographus, the eight-toothed spruce bark beetle
• Dendroctonus micans, the great spruce bark beetle

Another two invasive beetles, Ips cembrae and Ips sexdentatus, are not currently causing serious problems, but we are watching them carefully. 

Invasive bark beetles are a threat to scotland’s softwood trees.

1. Prevent

Reduce the risk by keeping your trees healthy

Prevention is better than a cure. Use standard good forest management strategies to make your forest healthier, more resilient, and more profitable. Then if invasive bark beetles do arrive, they are less likely to become established. 

Helpful strategies to reduce the risk of invasive bark beetle attack include regular monitoring and good forest hygiene, e.g. removing recently dead, infested, stressed, or damaged host trees. 

Be particularly vigilant after storms or other extreme weather

Bark beetles thrive in trees which are living, but stressed or damaged

Regularly identify, and, where possible, plan to remove them. 

Look out for damage caused by wind, snow, forest operations, animals, or recreation, as well as trees weakened by successive droughts, disease, or other environmental stressors. Freshly windblow trees are particularly vulnerable to infestation.

2. Monitor

Be alert for signs of invasive bark beetles

Report anything concerning to TreeAlert.

Invasive bark beetle larvae feed on the phloem and weaken trees by restricting the flow of nutrients.

As a result, infested trees can look obviously stressed with:

• bronzing foliage
• needle loss
• dead tops

You may also notice increased woodpecker activity (as woodpeckers feed on the larvae). 

If you investigate further, you might see beetles, larvae, or larval galleries under the bark. 

Resin tubes around entry holes on the bark are a characteristic symptom of D. micans. The impact and spread of D. micans can be reduced with biological control. 

Forest Research may contact you to arrange this following your Tree Alert report.

3. Adapt

Plant forests that are fit for the future

It’s more important than ever to plant the right tree in the right place for the right purpose.

If you are planning a new forest or restocking after felling, you can design a site that will be more resilient to bark beetles (and other threats) now and in the future.

• assess the site using tools like myForest (mapping, planning and sustainability), Ecological Site Classification (tree species choice) and ForestGALES (risk of wind damage) - sites at higher risk of drought or storm damage are more vulnerable
• choose trees which suit the site and are more ‘futureproof’. Forest Research have produced a shortlist of 14 conifers which are well suited to Scotland’s current and likely future climate
• diversify planting as much as feasible with no more than 65% of a single species. We don’t know what the future will hold so planting a mix of trees, including both conifers and broadleaf species, helps spread the risk
• to minimise the risk of bark beetle attack as your trees mature consider a Low Impact Silvicultural System (LISS) such as continuous cover forestry
• develop contingency plans for pest outbreaks