Agenda item

St Jude’s Storm

The Chairman registered his thanks on behalf of the committee for the hard work of the Manager and his team in the aftermath of St Jude’s storm on 28 October. The Manager thanked him for his kind words and emphasised that he felt it was necessary to close the Wood for two days following the storm whilst safety checks were carried out. The Superintendent agreed, noting the fatality that had occurred recently in Kew Gardens that had been caused by branch failure. He concluded by noting the storm damage had challenged staff already stretched by the ongoing tree inspection programme.

Budgets

In response to a question from a member, the Chairman replied that budget reductions and efficiencies were still necessary despite signs the wider economy was improving due to the fact that local government was one of the main sectors that was required to find savings. Moreover, whilst the Open Spaces were financed using private City Cash, the corporate decision to apply budget reductions across the entire organisation had been made.

LiDar Survey

In response to a suggestion from a member, the Manager agreed to look into conducting a LiDar survey of the Wood.