North East Community Forest Partnership approves long-term Forest Plan

The North East Community Forest (NECF) Partnership has approved its Forest Plan (2025-2050), a visionary long-term strategy to create a greener, healthier and more resilient North East England. This landmark plan sets out a shared vision, guiding principles and key objectives to enhance the region’s treescapes by creating more woodlands, planting trees and hedgerows and bringing nature closer to our communities, all while protecting our environment and supporting wildlife.

The Forest Plan promotes the environmental, social, and economic value of woodlands, trees, and hedgerows by providing a clear framework for coordinated action, fostering collaboration, attracting investment, and ensuring efforts support both local needs and national goals for nature recovery and environmental stewardship.

The plan has been developed by the North East Community Forest Partnership, drawing on evidence and community engagement. It will guide delivery, shape policy, attract investment, and provide the foundation for the long-term stewardship of treescapes across the region.

The Forest Partnership brings together the local authorities of Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle,  North Tyneside, South Tyneside, Sunderland and Northumberland alongside the North East Combined Authority and wide range of national, regional and local charities and agencies.

The Forest Partnership said:

“Our vision is to create a thriving, resilient, sustainable multipurpose forest delivering lasting benefits for people, the economy, nature, and the environment across North East England for generations to come.

“The Forest Plan is a bold step towards this goal and shows our commitment to nature recovery and climate action while delivering benefits for communities and the economy across the region.”

Supporting the Forest Plan, the NECF will roll out a five-year Delivery Plan (2025–2030) comprising of three key parts:

• Action Plan – clear goals and targets to bring the plan to life.
• Business Plan – how the NECF will deliver the work and fund it.
• Marketing & Communications Plan – how the NECF will keep people informed and involved.

Every five years the Delivery Plan will be refreshed to keep up with new opportunities and priorities.

Read the plan summary