Lewisham residents park car under tree to stop it being chopped down

Residents in Lewisham have taken the unusual step of using a parked car to stop one of the last remaining mature trees on their street from being cut down.

Lewisham Council said the tree on Senlac Road needed to be removed as it was causing subsidence to a nearby property. In a statement the council said: "We know many residents are understandably concerned about the removal of this tree.

"We want to provide clarity about why this is happening, the steps we have taken to try to avoid this outcome and what we will be doing to compensate for the tree’s removal.

"The tree in question has been implicated in the subsidence of a nearby property on Senlac Road.

"As a local authority, we have a legal duty to take all reasonable steps to prevent damage occurring to a third party’s property.

"Failing to remove the tree would go against the professional advice given by our insurers and could lead to the Council incurring considerable costs as a result."

The council said it would plant 17 new trees but some residents feel it won't be enough to match the current benefits of the large plane tree.

A petition has been signed by nearly 50,000 people.

Anna Moore, a respiratory doctor, is campaigning for its survival. "The council have been fighting this tree for 11 years now. A notice was put on the tree in June 201 that it was going to be cut down but they hadn't consulted any residents so we stood under the tree when tree surgeons came," Anna said.

"Then this year, the council committed to working with us and having a consultation process so that we could have some input. "Then we hear nothing and at the beginning of last week, they wrote saying the tree is going to come down.

"This is a healthy tree serving the entire community, it shouldn't be decided by an insurance company that is basically forcing the council's hands.

"17 replacement trees won't be able to replace a fully-grown mature tree It's so dangerous to be losing trees in a climate crisis," she added.

Last week, Anna and other residents decided to get in a car and park underneath the tree.

She added: "We had to do something and they can't fell a tree with us occupying it.

"We have people coming by who say they love the tree and would be really sad if it was gone. There has been a campaign of destruction against mature trees in Lewisham so this needed to be done." The tree is located outside a property and Anna believes the council is being forced to take action by insurance companies. Anna said: "Of course we want the person's house to be safe but we don't think it needs to be the tree or the house.

"We don't want this person to be financially out of pocket but we want to work with them to stop the system that makes it a binary choice when it isn't."

A Lewisham Council spokesperson said: "Unfortunately, we have been left with no option but to remove a tree on Senlac Road which has been implicated in subsidence of a nearby property.

"Since a report of subsidence at the property in 2011, we have explored all possible options for retaining the tree in Senlac Road and implemented extensive mitigation measures, but sadly these have not been successful in preventing further subsidence. "As a local authority, we have a legal duty to take all reasonable steps to prevent damage occurring to a third party’s property.

"Failing to remove the tree would go against the professional advice given by our insurers and could lead to the Council incurring considerable costs as a result, meaning less money would be available to fund vital local services and initiatives to tackle the Climate Emergency.

"We will be planting 17 new street trees on Senlac Road and nearby roads to compensate for the loss of this tree, in partnership with Street Trees for Living. These 17 trees are being funded by Lewisham Council."

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