Action Oak Newsletter Spring 2026
Contents
News
Action Oak News
The State of the UK's Oaks
National Plant Health Week 2026
Researcher Blogs with Dr Estrella Luna Diez and Prof. Melanie Smith
Researcher Spotlights with Drs Carrie Brady and Usman Hussain
Connections in Scotland
Community News
Viking Bursary
myForest Oak Health Workshops
UK Squirrel Accord
Project Officer
Tree Damage Survey
Events Upcoming
Ancient Tree Forum and Arb Association Scotland Branch - Summer Forum 2026
Herefordshire Parklands Conference
Tree Alert
Action Oak is now on LinkedIn
Action Oak News
In March Action Oak shared a new report The State of the UK's Oaks, funded by Defra. It sets out the current state of the UK oaks by bringing together key information, monitoring data and a review of existing work, while identifying important evidence gaps.
"Oak supports more biodiversity than any other native tree in Britain and stores around 31 million tonnes of carbon. When a species that underpins ecosystems, climate resilience and cultural identity starts to fail, the consequences are national, not local. Long term surveys show fewer young oaks establishing, while mature trees dominate the landscape. Without regeneration, today's ageing oak population becomes tomorrow's ecological cliff edge." Geraint Richards, Head Forester to the King and Duchy of Cornwall
With grateful thanks to Robert Bartlett and Bartlett Tree Experts who supported the launch of this report.
Find out more and download the Summary Analysis 2026 report below.
National Plant Health Week
It's not too late to catch up!
Taking the opportunity to work with the the Plant Health Community to share the work being done, this year Action Oak has been focused on our Plant Health Heroes.
Action Oak is proud to be part of National Plant Health Week 2026
Researcher Blog from Dr Estrella Luna Diez on memory in the forest.
Researcher Spotlights from Drs Carrie Brady and Usman Hussain on their work on Acute Oak Decline and the BAC-CHAT project.
Action Oak blog on Observatree from Prof. Melanie Smith, Action Oak's Research Coordinator shares insights on The State of the Uk's Oaks report.
Connections in Scotland
Action Oak had the opportunity to connect with the Royal Scottish Forestry Society (RSFS) and the UHI Scottish School of Forestry (SSF) at the SSF Open Day on 16th May. We were delighted to present Cat Wilson (RSFS Executive Director) and Neil Cleland (SSF Curriculum Leader Forestry, Horticulture and Geography) with copies of the State of UK’s Oaks report.
SSF is the only forestry, arboriculture and horticulture training provider in Scotland delivering further and higher education at a dedicated campus and associated woodland site near Inverness.
Neil Cleland explained that there was plenty of interest from staff and students in the potential for some focused training and research on oaks. Connections between RSFS and RFS are already long-standing, and Cat Wilson was enthusiastic about furthering links with Action Oak now that it is hosted by RFS.
Action Oak is especially pleased with this new and developing connection with RSFS, as Cat explained that the 1200ha RSFS Cashel Forest (managed by the Cashel Forest Trust) by Loch Lomond includes important examples of ancient oak woodland.
Under a 1000-year plan, the Cashel Forest Trust is restoring native woodland on the site, which had largely been farmed for sheep until RSFS acquired the site in the mid-1990s.
Community News
Royal Forestry Society Viking Bursary
The Royal Forestry Society (RFS) has opened applications for the Viking Bursary, a £2,000 award for students in higher education to study any aspect of forestry which benefits the practical management and resilience of woodlands.
The bursary will fund all costs directly associated with the project, including travel, accommodation and equipment.
Last year's bursary recipient was Aakash Basi (pictured), a PhD student at the University of Birmingham, who received £2,000 funding to help deepen his understanding of how urban forestry can not only restore polluted landscapes but also support soil biodiversity and long-term ecological resilience in towns and cities.
MyForest Oak Health Workshops
The Forest Lab: Observing and understanding oak health project aims to build a long-term, collaborative approach to oak health monitoring. It aims to develop a growing community of woodland managers empowered to assess, understand, and act on signs of oak decline, and a robust nationwide system for observing and recording oak health across the UK — with potential for future expansion to other tree species.
Oak enthusiasts and woodland managers are invited to attend, where they will receive training to use a newly developed app to aid oak health monitoring and management. Each session will include expert-led demonstrations, group discussions, and guided field activities
The workshops are delivered by Forest Research, in partnership with Aberystwyth University and the Sylva Foundation
Book your place by 1st June. You can read about the app, how it works and in our Annual Report 2024-25. If you'd like to volunteer to join the project, you can do so via myForest.
Date & Location
16/06/2026 Llanerchaeron, Ceredigion
17/06/2026 Attingham, Shrewsbury
18/06/2026 Nagshead, Forest of Dean
24/06/2026 Richmond Park, London
25/06/2026 Wanstead flats, London
30/06/2026 Wyre Forest, Bewdley
06/07/2026 Blickling Estate, Norfolk
07/07/2026 Ickworth Estate, Suffolk
08/07/2026 Fineshade, Corby
09/07/2026 Clumber Park, Nottinghamshire
10/07/2026 Gair Wood, Leeds
Job Opportunity at UK Squirrel Accord
(C) Miles Dodd
Project Officer
This role will play a central role in professionally delivering an established and expanding programme to coordinate landscape-scale grey squirrel management across northern England. Project area: Yorkshire, Lancashire and County Durham with potential for expansion into the Midlands.
Tree damage survey
Help the UK Squirrel Accord gather data on grey squirrel bark stripping damage.
The UK Squirrel Accord is calling on landowners, managers and anyone with permission to carry out a tree damage survey of woods using the National Forest method and report it. This will help to better understand bark stripping impacts of grey squirrels across the UK.
More details on the UKSA website.
Events Upcoming
Ancient Tree Forum and Aboricultural Association Scotland Branch - Summer Forum 2026
Ancient and Veteran Trees: From Conversation to Conservation
Thursday 4 – Friday 5 June 2026
The Ancient Tree Forum (ATF) and the Arboricultural Association Scotland Branch are delighted to invite you to the Summer Forum 2026, a two-day event exploring the conservation, ecology, management and cultural significance of open-grown ancient and veteran trees within Scotland’s distinctive treescapes.
More details, including how to book: ATF and Arboricultural Association Scotland Branch – Summer Forum 2026 | Ancient Tree Forum
Herefordshire Parkland Conference
Wednesday 1 - Friday 3 July 2026
Held at the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering (NMITE) with site visits to parklands each day.
Day 1: Parkland origins; cultural history; archaeology; geology; landscape art; mapping of trees, hedges, and woodland. Afternoon visit to Brampton Bryan or Gatley Park.
Day 2: Plant communities; biodiversity restoration; grassland restoration; long-term monitoring of species dependant on oak pasture - e.g., acute and chronic oak decline; the BACSTOP project; and the impact of environmental stressors on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Afternoon visit to Eastnor and Bromesberrow, or Moccas.
Day 3: Management solutions for treescapes, including microbial and naturalistic management strategies; soil rhizosphere considerations; oak landscape management; Forest Research mapping projects; and a high-level discussion panel. Afternoon visit to Kentchurch or Holme Lacy.
Action Oak will be attending and we look forward to seeing you there.
More details, including how to book: CONFERENCE PROGRAMME.pdf
TreeAlert
Report suspected tree pests and diseases found anywhere in the UK.
Action Oak is now on LinkedIn
If you haven’t yet joined us on LinkedIn then we look forward to welcoming you to the community!