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44 Spring 2023 L andowners are responsible for damage or injury caused by trees on their land and have a duty of care to prevent foreseeable harm occurring to people from any hazardous trees situated on their property. Trees need to be assessed regularly and managed to keep risks of causing harm or injury low. SCHOOLGIRL KILLED: COUNCIL FINED A council was recently fined £280,000 after the death of a six- year-old girl who was hit by a falling tree in her school playground. Ella Henderson was playing with friends at Gosforth Park First School in Newcastle upon Tyne on 25 September 2020 when a decaying willow tree collapsed. The Year 2 pupil was freed from under the tree by emergency services and taken to Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary, where she died the following morning. Several other children were hit by the falling tree but managed to escape, some with superficial injuries. An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the tree had decayed and was in a poor condition. Newcastle City Council had failed to identify the extent of the decay or to manage the risk posed by the tree. Newcastle City Council pleaded guilty to breaching section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and was fined £280,000 and ordered to pay costs of £8,020 by South Tyneside Magistrates on 10 January 2023. HSE Inspector Ashfaq Ali said: “This terrible incident led to the avoidable death of a young girl. HSE hopes others will learn from what happened to Ella. Our thoughts remain with Ella’s family.” RISK ASSESSMENT One of the key requirements when assessing risks posed by trees is to gain an understanding of the likelihood of structural tree failure. This is to better understand the mechanical properties of tree roots and stems and their likelihood of failure in high winds. There is also the duty to do all that is reasonably practicable to ensure that people are not exposed to risks to their health and safety. Doing all that is reasonably practicable does not mean that all trees have to be individually examined on a regular basis. A decision has to be taken on what is reasonable in the circumstances and this will include consideration of the risks to which people may be exposed. Given the large number of trees in public spaces across the country, control measures that involve inspecting and recording every tree would be disproportionate to the risk. Individual tree inspection is only likely to be necessary in specific circumstances. Examples are: • When a tree is in a place frequently visited by the public. • A tree has been identified as having structural faults that are likely to make it unstable. • A decision has been made to retain it a tree with these faults. An effective system for managing trees should include an overall assessment of risks from trees, identifying groups of trees by their position and degree of public access. This will enable the risks associated with tree stocks to be prioritised, and help identify any checks or inspections needed. There are several approaches to managing the risks from trees that involve ‘zoning’ trees according to the risk of them falling and causing serious injury or death. This can include: • Zone one where there is frequent public access to trees (eg parks/ recreation grounds, in and around picnic areas, schools, children’s playgrounds, popular footpaths, car parks, or at the side of busy roads) • Zone two where trees are not subject to frequent public access Trees situated on / close to property or on publicly accessible land present potential risk to both personal and public safety. THE IMPORTANCE OF TREE ASSESSMENTS