Information gathered and decision making regarding street tree replacement

Thank you for your email message. We aim to respond to all requests under
the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and Environmental Information
Regulations 2004 within 20 working days. More information about the way we
deal with information requests is on our web site at
[1]www.merton.gov.uk/foi
 
Information Governance Team
London Borough of Merton.
020 8545 4634
 
 
 

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References

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1. http://www.merton.gov.uk/foi

Thank you for your email message. We aim to respond to all requests under
the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and Environmental Information
Regulations 2004 within 20 working days. More information about the way we
deal with information requests is on our web site at
[1]www.merton.gov.uk/foi
 
Information Governance Team
London Borough of Merton.
020 8545 4634
 
 
 

══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════

Please help to reduce waste and do not print this message unless you
really need to.
This message, including any attached files, is intended just for the use
of the individual or organisation to whom it is addressed. Unauthorised
use (for example disclosure, storage or copying) is not permitted. If you
are not the intended recipient please destroy all copies and inform the
sender by return email. Any views or opinions expressed in email are
solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of
Merton Council. Merton Council reserves the right to monitor, record and
retain any incoming and outgoing emails for security reasons and for
monitoring internal compliance with the Merton Council policy on staff
use. Email monitoring and/or blocking software may be used and email
content may be read. Merton Council may be required to disclose this email
(or any response to it) under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 unless
the information in it is covered by one of the exemptions in the Act. The
message may contain information that is confidential or sensitive; you
should handle it accordingly.
Please view the council's privacy notice at
https://www.merton.gov.uk/legal/privacy-...
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Dear Sandra Vogel

We can confirm that FOI F20269 is due today, we sent out a reminder email to the team earlier this morning.

Yours sincerely

Information Governance
Information Team
Merton Council

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Dear Sandra Vogel, 

Freedom of Information Act 2000 / Environmental Information Regulations
2004 Information request 

Thank you for your Freedom of Information Request. 

We have now considered your information request as set out below. 

Your Question: 

Please can you tell me which of the following types of information you
collect regarding to the planting of replacement street trees: 

- the year the tree was planted 

- the type of tree 

- the location the tree was planted – and how that information is
recorded. For example, is it “outside house No / outside block No”, or is
a different referencing system used and can you describe that system. 

- how the tree was requested, for example by a resident, councillor,
officer, and any classes of information you may record. 

- how the decision was made to plant the tree, and by whom, and what the
criteria are for rejection of a request. 

Also, what other types of information do you collect regarding planting
replacement street trees as a matter of course? 

And finally if a street tree request is refused in one year: 

- is it automatically rolled over to the following year? 

- If not, are criteria applied to making a rollover decision and what are
they? 

- If there is no rollover of requests to the following year, on what
policy basis is that decision made. 

Our Response: 

Point 1: Provide me with the locations of all the 2000 tree pits on a map
which is detailed enough for me to zoom into and identify the precise
locations. 

• Please find attached the Excel Spreadsheet which has the 2841 Vacant
Tree Pit locations including both Park and Highway locations.  

• Within this Excel Spreadsheet we have provided 3 separate means of
identifying the precise tree locations including OS Grid Ref /
Lat/Long / What3 Words. We are not in a position to send maps for
every location, but the 3-location reference provided means the
requestor can search all locations.   

Point 2: Share the planting time planned for each of these pits, by which
I mean which pits were given new trees in winter 2023/24 

• Teams are just compiling the 2023/24 Planting Season and therefore
this data is not currently available. 

Point 3: Which are planned for new trees in winter 2024/25, and which are
planned for new trees for all subsequent years until the 2000 pits are all
replanted. 

• Currently we are planning for 500 trees in the 2024/25 season which is
a work in progress and will not be complete until July 2024  

If you have any queries or concerns about this, please contact me. 

If you are dissatisfied with the handling of your request or wish to
appeal against the decision to exempt any part of your request, you should
request an Internal Review at [1][Merton Borough Council request email] 
or write into Freedom of Information team, Merton Council, Civic Centre,
Morden, SM4 5DX. 

If you escalate to the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) without
following the council’s internal review process, the ICO will refer you
back to the council to enable the correct process to be followed. 

You can also appeal to the Information Commissioner at:
[2]https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/offi...

There is no charge for making an appeal. 

Yours sincerely, 

Raj Mistry 

Interim Director of Public Realm 

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