Published today, the 2025 State of the UK’s Woods and Trees, reveals that the quantity and variety of woodland wildlife is “plummeting”, despite a reported marginal rise in tree cover. According to the Woodland Trust this is due to the deteriorating ecological condition within UK woodlands.
The new report warns that our woodlands are less effective as habitats for wildlife because they lack complexity, such as having enough trees of differing ages, states and sizes. Only 1 in 50 native woodlands have more than one veteran tree per 200,000 m2. These older, well-established trees are especially valuable to wildlife thanks to their damage and decay features, which provide food and habitat.
“The State of the UK’s Woods and Trees 2025 reveals that the nation’s once rich, complex woodlands have become simpler and less biodiverse over time. UK woodlands lack open spaces such as glades, which allow light to reach the forest floor and young trees to grow. There are also fewer older trees, which, along with their soils, lock in carbon from the atmosphere. Alarmingly, many British woodlands have very few – if any – ancient and veteran trees left. We are calling on the government and others to invest in the management of our woodlands, so that people and wildlife can experience the benefits of these precious ecosystems, particularly in mitigating the effects of climate change,” explains Abigail Bunker, Director of conservation & external affairs, Woodland Trust.
The report also adds that UK woodlands lack deadwood. Approximately 25% of all forest species depend on deadwood for their lifecycles. However, as data from the Forest Research’s National Forest Inventory (NFI), indicates, 8 in 10 native UK woodlands scored unfavourably for amount of deadwood and 46% have no deadwood at all.
Wildlife decline
Bringing together a range of scientific studies, the report point to significant loss of woodland wildlife, including:
- Fewer butterflies: Woodland-associated butterflies declined by 47% between 1990 and 2022, according to the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) ‘all-species’ butterfly index.
- Fewer birds: The number of woodland birds has reduced by 37% in the past 50 years, and by 15% in the last 5 years, according to the JNCC woodland bird index, which draws on data from 37 woodland species.
- Fewer dormice: The population of dormice in surveyed woodland fell by 70% between 2000 and 2022, according to the National Dormouse Monitoring Programme (NDMP), although there are signs that the decline isn’t accelerating.
- Fewer plant species: The richness of different plant species in UK woodlands has reduced by 22% over the past 50 years, according to report data from the Bunce Survey.
Pests, diseases and climate change
According to the Trust, there are 121 different species of pest which have been introduced to UK native tree species, many from the international plant trade. The report predicts that climate change will allow these and potentially other pest species to further thrive, to the detriment of British trees. An estimated £919.9 million is spent each year in the UK on managing only six pests.
The Woodland Trust is calling for sensitive management of UK woodlands to make them more resilient to an escalating suite of threats, and unlock their ability to adapt to climate change.
Healthy woodlands play a key part of UK plans to proactively tackle and mitigate the effects of climate change, such as with natural flood management. The latest climate projections from the Met Office predict that the UK will experience increased flood risk across the country over the coming century. Woodland can benefit downstream communities, for example, by creating environments such as flood plains.
UK forests store one billion tonnes of carbon, and each year remove approximately 18.3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which is almost 5% of the UK’s annual carbon emissions.
The report reveals that UK woodland cover has marginally increased, from 13.2% of UK land area in 2020 to 13.5% in 2024. However, just 45% of woodland creation targets have been met by the UK in the past four years. To hit the government’s targets (16% by 2040 and 19% by 2050), current tree planting rates would need to double by 2030.
Wellbeing
The State of the UK’s Woods and Trees 2025 report also addresses the benefits of trees and woodlands to personal wellbeing. Research indicates that 9 in 10 people agreed that woodland biodiversity has a positive impact on their wellbeing. Woodland sounds, such as birds singing, the scrunch of fallen leaves or trees rustling in the breeze, were found to stimulate the most wellbeing responses (40.4%). Yet, the richest woodlands for wellbeing were very unevenly distributed across the UK, with lower value woodlands found in more deprived areas.
Tree planting inadequate
Despite canopy cover increasing as existing trees grow, the UK’s longest running woodland survey estimates there are 60% fewer individual trees in UK woodlands.
Urban tree canopy cover varies drastically between different areas of the country. Neighbourhoods in Hartlepool for example have tree cover of 2%, compared to Hampstead where some neighbourhoods have over 40%.
Abigail Bunker added: “It’s also vital that the government start hitting their tree-planting targets, so that there is time to grow the veteran trees of the future and help shape woodlands to better withstand challenges like new diseases, or rising temperatures. British people care deeply about the natural world and know how much we all benefit from healthy woods and trees. We must prioritise protecting, restoring and planting new woodlands, for the health of our communities and our planet.”
