Growing the nation's forests
We're creating a brand new 303-hectare woodland in Staffordshire, near the village of Abbots Bromley. Covering an area equivalent to over 420 football pitches, Bagots Park Wood will be the largest woodland we've created at Forestry England in over two decades.
Bagots Park Wood will bring long-term benefits for wildlife, local people, and the climate. It will help connect existing woodland in the area, and in time, it will also contribute to the UK's sustainable timber industry. We're in the early stages of planning this new woodland at the moment, but we will design it to last for generations, carefully selecting tree species that will be able to withstand changing climate conditions. Once established, it will connect vital habitats already supporting much-loved wildlife species including all three native newts, bats, badgers, a wide range of woodland birds, and plants such as the spotted marsh orchid.
This is one of many new woodlands we're creating at Forestry England to help grow the nation's forests. The work has been made possible thanks to the government's Nature for Climate Fund programme.
Work in progress...
Bagots Park Wood will one day be a thriving, resilient woodland, but good things take time! At the moment, we're still developing our plans for what the new woodland will look like, carrying out extensive site surveys and speaking to local people to gather their thoughts. We'll also be inviting local communities to share their views in a formal consultation currently planned for autumn 2026.
In the meantime, we'll be keeping this page up to date with any news we have about this exciting new woodland!
Why are we creating new woodlands?
The nation’s forests are astonishing. They provide homes for wildlife, give people places to connect with nature, provide a vital source of sustainable timber, support local jobs and industry, and are essential in helping to tackle the climate emergency.
Creating new, resilient woodlands now means that future generations will be able to enjoy all these benefits and more. This is why we're committed to planting at least 2,000 hectares of new woodland by the end of 2026.
Frequently asked questions
We're in the early stages of creating our design for this new woodland at the moment. Public feedback and surveys will inform our detailed plans for the new woodland. Our aim is to create the new woodland over the next couple of years with initial planting beginning in winter 2027/28.
We'll carefully plan in detail the trees that will be planted in the new woodland. Using a mix of tree and shrub species will help make the wood resilient to climate change and tree diseases, whilst also supporting a wider range of wildlife. We'll share more information about this as part of the public consultation, which is currently planned for autumn 2026.
Yes! The new woodland will be open to the public and provide a quiet space for local people to enjoy and connect with nature. Once we have finished planting the woodland, we will dedicate it under the Countryside and Rights of Way (CROW) Act so that people can access and explore the site.
Note that there are currently no plans to create a car park for Bagots Park Wood Wood, and access will primarily be through the network of existing footpaths in the area.
Bagots Park Wood will be a productive woodland once the trees have grown to a suitable height. As part of our ongoing management, we will begin to remove some of the trees after about 20-25 years to provide a sustainable supply of timber and help the woodland to continue to grow healthily for many years to come. When done responsibly, tree felling can be good for the health of forests, as well as providing other benefits such as helping to tackle the climate crisis. For a sustainable future, we need to use more wood to replace fossil fuel intensive products, like plastic, and to lock up carbon.
