Celebrating the best in British Forestry at the RFS Awards

Gold and Silver awards were presented across a total of five categories covering multi-purpose forestry, timber production, small woodlands, education and community woodlands.

The winners at this year’s RFS Excellence in Forestry Awards reflect the evolving landscape of forestry as landowners and woodland managers seek innovative methods to combat the climate crisis, biodiversity loss and the increasing risk of pests and diseases. Sustainable practices such as continuous cover forestry (CCF) were a common theme in this year’s competition.

Tilhill Forestry, member of BSW Group, was delighted to be once again sponsoring the Bede Howell Award for Excellence in Silviculture, which looks to recognise and encourage exemplary silviculture in commercial woodland or compartments of established crops where wood production is the primary aim.

Excellence in timber production

The Bede Howell Award for Excellence in Silviculture, sponsored by Tilhill Forestry, had the highest number of contenders with tough competition between the top entrants. The sought-after Gold award was presented to the 160 Ha Sotterley Estate for its magnificent plantations of mature oaks.

Judges praised Sotterley Estate’s foresters, Miles Barne and Julian Bachelor for their “laser-focus” on the production of high quality oak timber and meticulous attention to detail.

“Here we saw oak silviculture at its best,” the judges said. “Miles’ focus is on fast-grown quality oak sawlogs grown on a shortened rotation and there is no shortage of takers for his magnificent mature oak. We were left with very little room to find any fault in the silviculture at Sotterley and the future crops look assured of achieving the highest prices.”

Silver place for the Bede Howell Award went to Fring Estate for its impressive output of various forest products and its innovation with species selection and placement.

Celebrating the legacy of foresters no longer with us

This year, two awards celebrate the trailblazing approach of woodland managers who have sadly passed away in the last year.

Gold for The Duke of Cornwall’s Award for Resilient Multi-Purpose Forestry – sponsored by Savills and TreesPlease – was presented to Morton Hall Estate, whose owner, Bill Mason sadly died suddenly in June this year. Bill was a long-standing proponent of CCF, a sustainable method of timber production that involves selectively thinning trees to create a diverse forest structure and continuous canopy cover.

As one of the earliest adopters of CCF, Moreton Hall Estate demonstrates the successful results of over half a century of this approach to forestry.

Speaking of Mason’s family and forester, Josh Robinson, the judges said: “There was clear evidence that despite Bill Mason’s unexpected death, the next generation is ready and able to take up the reins.”

Speaking on behalf of the family, Bill Mason’s daughter, Andrea Mason said: “Bill would have been – and the family are – delighted for the woodlands to have been awarded this prestigious prize as its criteria fully align with our management goals. Bill was a forester to his core and he loved to share his knowledge. The family will continue to manage these woodlands in Bill’s stead, using science-driven, CCF-led silvicultural approaches to deliver multi-faceted resilience.”

Winning Gold for the FSC-sponsored Small & Farm Woodland of The Year was Hole Farm, whose owner, Robin Carver also sadly passed away this year. Robin purchased the farm with his wife, Rose in 1982, but decades of farming large fields, removal of hedges and poor ploughing practice meant the land and soils were in a desolate condition.

To remedy the situation, Robin planted 43,000 trees across 17 Ha, 10,000 shrubs and over 8 miles of hedges. The aim was to restore and safeguard the farmland and its soils.

Charles Inglis, Robin’s son-in-law and successor, said: “By their own admission they made many mistakes, but by their energy, enthusiasm and a willingness to try new ideas they have transformed the landscape. The woods achieved their objective, by massively reducing the damage being done to the soils, creating some fabulous wildlife habitat and producing trees that they could be proud of in the relatively short period of 40 years.”

Silver for The Duke of Cornwall’s Award for Multi-purpose Woodland was presented to Thomas Cook of Sennowe Forest in Norfolk. Thomas is another early adopter of CCF, creating an uneven-age, multi-species forest that relies primarily on natural regeneration.

“The advantages of continuous cover forestry are many, principally disease resistance, wind resistance, fire resistance, climate resistance, adaptability to markets and higher timber yield,” said Thomas Cook. “It is also ecologically beneficial and protects and fosters wildlife of all forest species.”

Silver was awarded to Normanton Hall in the Small & Farm Woodland Award was. John Machin manages the 2.38 Ha of plantations which the judges praised for the choice of species, standard of maintenance and for blending with the surrounding landscape.

“These woods are already providing additional wildlife habitat and are laid out with rides to allow access for local walkers,” the judges commented. “They are also used by the local forest school with children involved with various woodland activities.”

Recognising community and education

The Education & Learning Award – sponsored by Forestry Journal and PEFC – highlights the need to get children and young people engaged in nature and forestry. The importance of the country’s woodlands is only set to grow in the coming decades. Nurturing this interest at an early stage in children’s education will be vital for fostering the future generation of foresters and woodland managers.

Gold went to Great Wood Farm Early Years Centre, a nursery based on a farm in Lincolnshire and surrounded by 150 acres of woodland owned by Forestry England.

The judges commented: “It was evident that despite children appearing to be ‘everywhere’, the cleverly organised activities gave children a real sense of freedom and responsibility – for themselves and for each other – whilst building a respect for their environment and helping them to understand their role in its future.”

Silver was awarded to Branch Out Forestry School in Shropshire which earned top marks for its links with the community, knowledge of the natural environment and creative curriculum.

The Community Woodland of the Year Award – sponsored by The Woodland Trust – celebrated two woodlands for their commitment to serving local people. Gold went to Astbury Mere Country Park in Chester, an ex-quarry that was originally intended for industrial use in the 1980s before local people came together to form a community group and fight the decision.

In the end, half of the site was gifted to the trust and since then, it has become an important part of the local community.

Silver was awarded to The Boston Woods Trust, an ambitious project that has vastly improved the quality of green space in and around the town of Boston.

The Excellence in Forestry Awards will return next year, held across Worcestershire, Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Dorset and the South Western region.