THE HAPPY MAN TREE HAS BEEN NAMED ENGLAND’S TREE OF THE YEAR 2020! PLEASE HELP WITH THE NEXT STAGE OF OUR LEGAL CAMPAIGN TO SAVE THE TREE.

The Friends of the Happy Man Tree are incredibly grateful for all of the amazing support our campaign to save the Happy Man Tree has received to date. Your donations, signatures and kind words have already prolonged the life of this invaluable 150 year old London Plane Tree by six months! Together we can help it survive for decades and centuries to come.

Whilst this campaign is centred on saving our Happy Man Tree, we know that it is part of a wider change that needs to take place. Mature street trees play a vital role in our efforts to face the climate emergency and are greatly valued by the communities of which they are a part; we must ensure they are prioritised in all planning and development processes. The success of this campaign will help underpin this movement for change.

At a recent Planning Committee meeting, Hackney Council again approved the Phase 3 application and condemned the Happy Man Tree to be felled. We have many concerns about their decision-making process - see below. We are therefore seeking to raise a further £3,000 to explore further legal challenges with our legal team, who have been incredibly generous with their time throughout the campaign. 

We appreciate that this is an incredibly difficult time for everyone, and any support you can give is deeply appreciated. 

Thank you for your ongoing support and love for the Happy Man Tree!

Campaign Update

Since our last update in July 2020 a great deal has happened in the Happy Man Tree campaign.

• Over the summer, supported by generous donations from members of the public and supporters of Happy Man Tree, our legal team initiated a legal challenge against Hackney Council and an application for a Judicial Review. The application aimed to rescind the out of date licence that Berkeley Homes were relying on. Although not ultimately successful it did achieve the vital outcome of protecting the Happy Man Tree from being felled in the interim period, and resulted in Berkeley Homes committing to protecting the roots of the tree throughout the demolition of The Happy Man pub.

• The legal proceedings also helped to secure a commitment from Hackney Council that the whole of Phase 3 of the Woodberry Down development would be reconsidered at a Planning Committee meeting – thus giving the Friends of the Happy Man another opportunity to raise their objections about the unnecessary felling of the tree, as well as putting forward alternative Phase 3 proposals that allowed the tree to be kept alongside the retention of all housing units.

• A total of 121 objections about the loss of the Happy Man Tree, and other serious issues such as density, light and privacy, and the fossil fuel based district heating energy centre, were made. Friends of the Happy Man Tree were hopeful that serious consideration would be given to the alternative design created by architects within the Happy Man Tree. 

• This Planning Committee meeting on 9 September was very disappointing and frustrating on many levels. Objectors’ concerns were minimised in a variety of different ways and the scope and depth of the committee’s discussion was poor, especially given the size and impact of the scheme. No consideration was given to the alternative proposals for the scheme. Our report of the meeting gives more detail: https://www.thehappymantree.org/post/hurdles-and-frustration-as-council-approves-cutting-down-the-happy-man-tree

• Hackney Council approved the Phase 3 application as it stands and has condemned the Happy Man Tree to be felled. This decision is pending approval by the Mayor of London, with a final decision imminent in the coming weeks. 

THE WOODLAND TRUST TREE OF THE YEAR 2020 (ENGLAND)

The Friends of the Happy Man Tree are overjoyed to share that The Happy Man Tree has been voted The Woodland Trust’s Tree of the Year 2020! This is amazing news and an incredible show of public support to save this 150 year old London Plane Tree, which has been condemned to be felled by Hackney Council and Berkeley Homes.

Your votes, donations, signatures and kind words have already prolonged the life of our invaluable Tree of the Year by six months! Together we can help it survive for decades and centuries to come. 

In this next stage, we need to raise a further £3,000 to explore further legal challenges with our legal team, who have been incredibly generous with their time throughout the campaign. Below you can read a full update of recent developments. We appreciate that this is an incredibly difficult time for everyone, and any support you can give is deeply appreciated. 

Sadly The Cubbington Pear Tree which was the 2015 winner was felled on 20 October 2020 to make way for the HS2 rail line. We hope that with your help The Happy Man Tree does not suffer the same fate. Trees like the Happy Man Tree and the felled Cubbington Pear are not obstacles to remove but natural assets to incorporate and value.

Thank you for your ongoing support and love for the Happy Man Tree, England’s Tree of the Year 2020!