Tree Constraints Plan (TCP)
A Tree Constraints Plan is the essential first document in any development project where trees are present. Produced at the earliest stage of design, it gives architects, planners, and developers a clear, accurate picture of every above and below-ground constraint posed by trees on and around the site — before a single line is drawn.
Urban Tree Management produces BS5837-compliant Tree Constraints Plans for projects of all sizes across Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Cheshire, Merseyside, and nationwide.
BS5837-Compliant Tree Constraints Plans for Planning & Development
A Tree Constraints Plan is produced following the initial BS5837 tree survey and forms the foundation on which the rest of the arboricultural planning process is built. It plots every surveyed tree onto the site plan using accurate GNSS or topographic survey data, showing root protection areas, crown spreads, tree categories, and any above-ground constraints such as shading arcs and crown conflict zones.
Providing this information to the design team at the earliest opportunity allows architects to plan layouts that work with the trees rather than against them — avoiding root protection area incursions, preventing costly redesigns later in the programme, and significantly improving the chances of planning approval first time.
Without an accurate Tree Constraints Plan, architects and developers are effectively designing blind — and the most common consequence is a site layout that conflicts with retained trees, triggering objections, redesigns, or refusal.
Tree Constraints Plan to Become ACOP
Under the new draft BS5837 the Tree Constraints Plan will be replaced by an Arboricultural Constraints and Opportunities Plan — ACOP. The ACOP will be required to show not just existing tree constraints but projected future canopy growth at 10, 20, and 30 years — making canopy cover modelling a standard part of every planning submission. Urban Tree Management's ACOP plans are already being produced to this standard ahead of the new draft coming into force.
What a TCP includes
Accurate, Planning-Ready Tree Data
Every tree is accurately plotted onto the site layout using GNSS survey equipment or topographic survey data. Survey outputs include tree positions, BS5837 category gradings, crown spreads measured at the four cardinal points, and root protection areas calculated for each tree.
Above and Below-Ground Constraints
The plan clearly shows all constraints likely to affect the development layout, including root protection areas, structural root considerations, shading arcs, crown conflict zones, and buildability limitations. This information is essential for architects when positioning buildings, access routes, parking areas, and services.
CAD-Ready Outputs
All Tree Constraints Plans are produced in AutoCAD and delivered in architect-friendly formats that integrate directly into your design workflow. Plans are clearly colour-coded, fully annotated, and produced to a standard that meets local planning authority validation requirements across Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Cheshire, and beyond.
Why Commission Your TCP Through Urban Tree Management
Our Tree Constraints Plans are produced by fully qualified arboricultural consultants — not technicians or surveyors with limited tree knowledge. This means the data we capture is accurate, the constraints we identify are correctly interpreted, and the advice we provide on buildability and design integration reflects genuine consultancy-level expertise in tree risk assessment, structural root behaviour, and fungal biology.
A TCP produced by Urban Tree Management forms a solid, defensible foundation for the arboricultural impact assessment and method statement that follow — making the entire BS5837 process faster, smoother, and less likely to generate objections or conditions from the local authority tree officer.
We work closely with architects, planning consultants, and developers throughout the North West and nationally, and are experienced in delivering TCPs within tight feasibility and planning timescales.
FAQ
Do I need a Tree Constraints Plan?
If trees are present on or adjacent to your site, yes. It follows the tree survey and is what allows the layout to be designed around the constraints rather than into them. Most local planning authorities expect it as part of the arboricultural submission.
What is the difference between a TCP and a Tree Protection Plan?
The constraints plan comes first and shows what the trees impose on the site — root protection areas, crown spreads, shading arcs. The tree protection plan comes later and shows how retained trees will be physically protected during construction. Different documents at different stages of the process.
When should I commission it?
Before the layout is drawn. That is the whole point of the document. A constraints plan produced after the design is fixed tells you what has to change, rather than informing what gets drawn in the first place.
Do trees on neighbouring land go on the plan?
Yes. A neighbouring tree's root protection area extends across the boundary and constrains your site exactly as your own trees would — and you have no control over it, cannot remove it, and cannot prune it without the owner's agreement. Omitting third-party trees is one of the more common reasons a plan is queried by a tree officer.
Tree Constraints Plans — Greater Manchester, Lancashire & Cheshire
A Tree Constraints Plan is the document that lets your architect design with the trees rather than around a refusal. Produced early, it prevents the redesign. Produced late, it explains why the layout has to change.
Urban Tree Management produces CAD-ready BS5837 Tree Constraints Plans for developers, architects and planning consultants across the North West — and we are already producing to the ACOP standard ahead of the revised BS5837 coming into force.
Get in contact with our highly experienced and personable team of arboricultural consultants today, to discuss your requirements and to obtain your zero obligation quotation.
