Form

LATF beat up survey guidance

Updated 12 August 2024

Applies to England

• Publication for Northern Ireland
• Publication for Scotland
• Publication for Wales

You need to complete the beat-up survey form when making a final maintenance claim.

Instructions 

As part of your Local Authority Treescapes Fund (LATF) agreement, a beat-up survey is required to assess the number of trees surviving at the end of the maintenance period (3 years following planting) and determine which sites fall below the required minimum 75% survival rate. For sites where this is the case, you must determine how many trees you will need to plant in the final winter planting season (October to March) and then undertake this work by 31 March.

The form helps you plan which sites need restocking, and record when this is completed. 

A completed beat-up survey is required to enable the final maintenance payment for the relevant trees. For example: 

• if you have a Round 1 agreement (21/22) for 1 year of planting, your single, final maintenance claim and beat-up survey will be due by 31 March 2025 for all LATF-funded work

• if you have a Round 1 agreement for 2 years of planting, your final maintenance payment for the Year 1 trees will be due by 31 March 2025 (as part of a maintenance claim covering both Year 1 and 2 trees) and for the Year 2 trees (only) by 31 March 2026

The Post-Planting Reports (PPRs) that were submitted for the relevant year of trees should be used to inform each beat-up survey (original number/type of trees planted and where). For Year 1 trees in their final maintenance year, use the Year 1 PPR (submitted with Claim 2) and for Year 2 trees, use the Year 2 PPR (Claim 4). 

Download the latest LATF beat-up survey form spreadsheet in the summer of the final maintenance year for your LATF-funded trees.

This can be found on the LATF claims page or requested from LATF@forestrycommission.gov.uk.

The spreadsheet is macro-enabled to allow you to add more sites, however a macro-disabled version is available should issues arise.

Your beat-up survey should align with the sites listed in your Post-Planting Report (PPR). This may be for either Year 1 or Year 2 planting, depending on the stage of your agreement in this financial year.

Summary of actions to take in the final maintenance year 

1. Carry out a beat-up survey during your summer maintenance rounds, taking and storing photos of each site (as listed in the relevant PPR) .

2. Complete Part 1 of the beat-up form and use this to populate the left-hand side of Part 2 (restocking) and Part 3 (natural colonisation remedial work) by 1 October. This is to inform the work that needs to be done to achieve a minimum 75% survival rate per site for LATF-funded trees and allow for this work to be completed by 31 March. 

3. Complete restocking and/or natural colonisation remedial work during the winter planting season. 

4. Complete the right-hand sides of Parts 2 and 3 and the declarations in Part 4 by 31 March. Ensure you check and sign the declarations in Part 4 (this should be the lead applicant or signatory used for previous claims/acceptance of offer). 

5. Ensure that your beat-up survey spreadsheet is accompanied by photos and maps (as detailed later in this guidance). 

6. Submit the completed spreadsheet by 31 March of the financial year in which the final maintenance payment for these trees is due (or the 3rd year of the maintenance period following planting where no maintenance payment is scheduled). Send to LATF@forestrycommission.gov.uk. If a final maintenance payment is due, the beat-up survey should be sent with the Maintenance Claim Form and Claims Declaration Form.

Further details are provided in the following sections. Please contact LATF@forestrycommission.gov.uk. (quoting your agreement reference in the subject heading) if you require further assistance. 

Part 1: beat-up survey 

To help complete the beat-up survey, you should open the PPR submitted with your claim 2 (or claim 4 if assessing planting from Year 2 of a 2-year agreement). The beat-up survey should be carried out in the final summer maintenance rounds while the trees are in leaf (recommended to be completed by 1 October) 

Instructions can be found in the grey box at the top of the tab. Enter the lead Local Authority name, LATF agreement reference (only one agreement should be detailed per spreadsheet) and choose the relevant planting year that the beat-up relates to. Enter the date the survey is fully completed once this has been done. 

In the main table, list the sites named in the relevant PPR (‘Planting and NC Locations’ tab). Complete the row for each site as follows, for both planting and Natural Colonisation (NC) sites as applicable. 

Planted sites 

Complete the row for each site, including grid reference, number of LATF-funded trees planted (from the PPR) and number of LATF-funded trees that have not survived (determined during the beat-up survey).

Where groups of 50 or more whips have been planted, you can estimate a survival rate and manually enter a % instead of entering numbers of trees lost. This will generate a number of trees in a hidden column that is used to calculate % survival rate overall. Leave blank any columns relating to NC. 

Natural colonisation sites 

For NC sites, leave blank all columns relating to LATF-funded planted trees. Enter the number of NC trees that have established (approximate if large numbers are evident). If this is 0 enter ‘Y’ for site requires inspection to determine remedial work. If there is clear evidence of trees establishing by NC, enter ‘N’ to inspection required. 

Survival rates and restocking/remedial work 

The tab will calculate the survival rate per planted site, and where this falls below 75% it will automatically flag that the site requires restocking (‘Y’). NC sites with 0 saplings should be flagged manually as requiring inspection (enter ‘Y’). 

Photographic requirements 

Photos should be taken for each site at the end of the maintenance season and stored separately. These should show the extent of surviving planting/NC, and named accordingly. Suggested naming conventions can be seen on the example entries, for example, Redbridge Lane.

Ensure photos are provided for each site/entry on the Excel spreadsheet Part 1 and that the name of the photo matches the name entered on this tab.

Maps have already been supplied for these sites in the original PPR so are not needed at this time (unless locations change – see Parts 2 and 3). 

Part 2: restocking of planted sites 

Complete this tab for all planting sites that have been identified in Part 1 as requiring restocking. Instructions can be found in the grey guidance box at the top of the tab. Do not use this tab for NC sites. 

Restocking plans should be entered following completion of the beat-up survey (ideally by 1 October) to enable sufficient time to restock (if needed) during the winter planting season. Restocking should be done to achieve a minimum 75% survival rate of the LATF-funded trees originally planted and you do not need to restock up to 100% of these.

Replacement tree stock should be direct replacements of trees funded in this LATF agreement and should be done on a like-for-like basis, for example, replace failed standards with standards. 

If no restocking is required (all sites have achieved a minimum 75% survival rate), and the agreement does not involve NC, then you can move to Part 4 to sign the declarations and submit the form and supporting photos to LATF@forestrycommission.gov.uk from 1 October to 31 March, along with your final maintenance claim for these trees. 

Before 1 October (left hand section)

Using the information in Part 1, Part 2 will draw across sites that require restocking (planted sites only). It will also automatically generate the minimum number of trees that need to be restocked to achieve 75% survival rate.

Manually enter the number of whips, feathers and/or standards you will plant. Please restock like for like, for example, replace failed standards with standards. 

Between 1 October and 31 March (right hand section)

Carry out your restocking work during the winter planting season and complete this part once this has been done. This will calculate the updated survival rate.  

A second photograph should be provided per restocked site clearly evidencing the work undertaken (named by site). Suggested naming conventions can be seen on the example entry, for example, ‘photo 3 Redbridge Lane Restocking’.

Ensure photo names match each site/entry on the Excel spreadsheet. 

If the restocking work is undertaken at a different location due to the original location being a factor in failure, provide maps to show where the restocking has taken place.

As for your PPR, include a grid reference and plot either individual trees or the boundary of groups of trees. A photo can be embedded on the map if this is feasible. Suggested naming conventions can be seen on the example entry. You do not need to send maps for planting sites that remain in the same location.  

Part 3: natural colonisation failure intervention 

Complete this tab for all NC sites that have been identified in Part 1 as having no evidence of new tree growth and will require an inspection to discuss and determine remedial work to remove barriers to this. Instructions can be found in the grey guidance box at the top of the tab. Do not use this tab for planting sites. 

The names of the sites where no evidence of successful NC is evident (NC sites only) is automatically drawn from Part 1 to Part 3. Enter the reason for NC failure and the potential remedial work required (if not known, leave blank as this can be discussed during inspection which is intended as a supportive visit). 

All sites drawn in automatically to Part 3 will be marked as ‘Y’ for requiring inspection. This process will be triggered on receipt of your maintenance claim and complete beat-up form. 

Part 4: declarations 

In the declaration tab, tick all boxes and sign your name and date to confirm you understand all items and activities recorded in the document to be accurate and have provided all necessary additional evidence before proceeding. 

If you are due a final maintenance payment, please also complete a Maintenance Claim Form and Claims Declaration form. 

Supporting Evidence 

Mapping 

Maps should be attached to your beat-up submission only for restocked planting sites where the location differs to that submitted in your original PPR. 

You can use Geographic Information System (GIS) maps, your own map if it meets the standards below, or a base map requested through the Forestry Commission’s Map Request Service. If you use this service, we will supply a blank base map for you to mark up by hand to show your proposal. You should request this as early as possible. We will supply base maps to applicants either by post or electronically (via email). We will not accept screenshots from internet map browsers such as Google Maps as base maps. 

When creating a map, we recommend you comply with the following: 

• maps must be based on a scale of 1:2,500 or 1:5,000 (or smaller if eight figure grid references are provided for individual trees)

• maps must show all the land on which the Local Authority Treescape Fund planting/NC has been undertaken 

• the boundary of the site must be clearly marked by a coloured line 

• the location of the proposed work must be shown and either marked with a shaded/hatched area with the number of trees planted in the area listed next to each location, or each tree plotted individually if software allows

• the site name (as detailed on the beat-up form) must be shown 

• include a minimum 6 figure OS grid reference for the centre of the map (on the map) 

• the map number and the total number of maps (for example, ‘1 of 3’) must be visible 

Photographic Evidence 

Photographs must be submitted for each planting site at the time of the beat-up survey clearly demonstrating the extent of LATF-funded planting that has survived to the end of the maintenance period. For example, more than one photograph may be needed where the work exceeds the frame or is not clearly evident from a single photograph.

Single photos of each individual tree are not required. This will be more practical for larger-scale planting of feathers and whips, and may reduce the number of photos needed for standards if, for example, they are planted along a street and can all be identified and photographed from one angle. 

If restocking work is done, a second photograph for the relevant planting site(s) is required to evidence this. 

Labelling photographs 

Label photographs with the Ordnance Survey (OS) National Grid reference and planting site name or ID used in the beat-up form. Give the LATF Agreement reference and the date. If you are sending more than one image, also include the image number. 

Photographic evidence quality 

Requirements apply equally to digital photographs or those supplied as paper photographs. All photographs must meet the following standards: 

• photographs must be in focus and clearly show the relevant capital item or environmental feature
• images sent by email must be in JPEG format
• digital images should not be smaller than 600 x 400 pixels and ideally the image file size no larger than 400KB
• printed photographs must be no smaller than 15 cm x 10 cm
• where possible, include a significant feature to provide authenticity (for example, building, road, pathway). 

Final steps 

Email your completed beat-up survey to LATF@forestrycommission.gov.uk with your photographs (and maps for new locations if applicable) attached to the email in a zip file. This should accompany your final maintenance claim.

Quote your LATF reference number and clearly state that the email is your final maintenance claim submission in the subject line and body of your email. 

The beat-up survey spreadsheet must be submitted by 31 March of the third and final maintenance year of the agreement for the trees it applies to. Please contact the LATF team if you require assistance with completing and submitting the final beat-up survey and maintenance claim forms.