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Autumn Review 2023

2023 Annual Review

Thanks to your support, each year the Association can increase its work to promote arboriculture and ensure it is represented as a key profession in its own right.

January

Course catalogue expands

The Association is now able to offer a broader variety of training options in more formats than ever before. With more instructors on board, professionals are able to choose from a calendar of online, in-person and e-learning courses through the year.

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2 million page views

From 1st January – 31st December trees.org.uk generated over 2 million page views, breaking the 2021 record of 1.3 million.

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February

ARB Magazine Issue 200

ARB Magazine Issue 200

The 200th issue of the official publication for Arboricultural Association members was released.

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Ted Green Awarded MVO

Ted Green awarded MVO

Ted Green was made a Member of the Royal Victorian Order (MVO) for his services to the Crown Estate at a ceremony at Windsor Castle in February.

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March

Red Diesel: Arboriculture exemption recognised by HMRC

Red Diesel: Arboriculture exemption recognised by HMRC

In March, after months of lobbying, the Association secured confirmation of a new measure from HMRC, allowing arborists to use rebated fuel in machines and appliances for all forms of tree work.

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Women in Arb at Kew

Women in Arb at Kew

The Women in Arboriculture group hosted its first event on 29th March, attended by over 100 professionals, within the wonderful setting of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew.

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DART Malawi Deployment

DART Malawi Deployment

Following devastation caused by Cyclone Freddy, The Malawi government invited the Disaster Arborist Response Team (DART) charity and its team of arboricultural aid workers to assist in clearing trees to provide access to vital roadways and critical infrastructure. The Association provides sponsorship support.

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May

ARB Show back with a bang

ARB Show back with a bang

For the first time since 2019 over 6,000 showgoers created a brilliant festival atmosphere all weekend, with the arb community out in force and proving that the show is the best place to put arboriculture in the spotlight.

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New Approved Contractor Handbook

New Approved Contractor Handbook

The new accreditation handbook was launched to bring together in one short document all the information you need to understand how the scheme operates.

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June

Succession crisis in arboriculture

Succession crisis in arboriculture

The Association began work on developing a project focused on addressing the succession crisis in arboriculture. A range of professional organisations and key stakeholders are contributing their ideas about the future of arboriculture.

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Tree Watering Campaign

Tree Watering Campaign

Over the summer our annual tree watering campaign was supported by the Woodland Trust and drew record media coverage for the Association. Tens of thousands of our tree watering tags were placed on newly planted trees across the UK and Ireland.

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Understanding Tree Behaviour

Understanding Tree Behaviour

Over 80 arborists enjoyed a special one-day event on morphophysiology, one of the most important recent contributions to our view of arboriculture, with Giovanni Morelli and Stefania Gasperini.

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eBook platform launched

eBook platform launched

Technical Guides 1-5 are the first-ever publications to be made available on a special new interactive platform, designed to provide essential arboricultural knowledge on the go.

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July

Government endorsement for What is arboriculture? leaflet

Government endorsement for What is arboriculture? leaflet

In July the Association’s What is Arboriculture? resources received endorsement from the Forestry Commission and the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

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Arboricultural Resource Packs

Arboricultural Resource Packs

We’ve been inundated with requests for free arboricultural resource packs from members and the public. Thousands of materials promoting arboriculture and tree care knowledge were sent around the UK and overseas.

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August

Jo Hedger makes history

Jo Hedger makes history

Jo Hedger won a record sixth World Tree Climbing Championship in Albuquerque.

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Awarding outstanding contributions

Awarding outstanding contributions

Chris Knapman was presented with the 2023 Arboricultural Association Award for his contributions to arboriculture. Best Student of the Year was awarded to Kinga Chudziak at Merrist Wood College, while Cecily Withall wins Young Professional of the Year.

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September

UK & Ireland Tree Climbing Competition

UK & Ireland Tree Climbing Competition

Over 40 competitors and a team of volunteers created an unbelievable atmosphere all weekend in tough conditions. Jo Hedger and Michael Curwen won the Masters’ challenge.

Conference returns to Warwick

Conference returns to Warwick

Over 400 arboricultural professionals enjoyed 2 days of thought-provoking talks and workshop sessions with an eclectic mix of expert speakers.

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Roots - A Field Guide for Identification

Roots - A Field Guide for Identification

Roots - A Field Guide for Identification by Kristin Moldestad and Olve Lundetræ was translated into English and published to increase our knowledge and understanding of the world beneath trees.

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October

Growing membership support

Record numbers of members joined the Association in 2023, with figures reaching over 3,000 paying members for the first time. The number of female members increased by 2% and our longest-running membership is now 59 years.

Government skills fund

Arboriculturists are set to benefit as an additional £1 million has been allocated to fund training courses in forestry and arboriculture across England, following an unprecedented demand.

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November

What is Arboriculture? video campaign

A new campaign was launched for Green Careers Week and National Tree Week to promote the range of career opportunities and variety of skillsets within arboriculture.

Wednesday Webinars Record

Wednesday Webinars Record

The Association’s webinar series hit a record 891 live viewers for the first time. Continuing its growth as a platform for experts to share insights and knowledge with a greater audience than possible through in-person events, the webinars spread awareness and understanding of a host of issues relevant to tree care and wider environmental sectors.

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Treetime

Treetime

Ted Green’s book tells the story of 80 years of spending time with trees and tree folk, describing some of his adventures and offering his thoughts and insights. Always passionate to give back to arboriculture, Ted kindly donates all profits from his book to the Association.

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