Tilhill Forestry
About Tilhill Forestry
Tilhill Forestry was founded in 1948, and is the UK’s leading forestry and timber harvesting and marketing company, offering consultancy and contracting services to woodland and forestry owners. It trades over 2.5Mm3 timber per annum and complies to both FSC®’s and PEFC's Forest Management and Chain of Custody standards.
Environmental responsibility is key to all of Tilhill's operations. In fact, it employs a team of ecologists who advise on environmental matters.
Tilhill have worked on environmentally-sensitive sites for many years, including Sites of Special Scientific Interest for Natural England, Countryside Council for Wales, and Scottish Natural Heritage. We also work with many local authorities to help them deliver a range of environmental enhancements.
Soil Association Certification's auditors are thorough, pragmatic and always helpful.Tilhill
Tell us about your forest management:
We certify 220,000ha of forests ranging from 7ha to 7500ha throughout the UK. Our Group scheme is split into two different types of membership, Resource Management (who also instruct Tilhill to manage their forest) and Group members (who manage the forests themselves).
How long has your business been certified with FSC/PEFC?
We started our forest certification group scheme in 1999 and Coed Llandelgla in North Wales was one of the first certified forests in the UK.
We’re now the largest Group scheme in the UK and continue to grow with new members joining on a monthly basis.
We transferred from our previous Certification Body to Soil Association Certification in 2014.
What impact does certification have on the forests you manage?
Many of our customers certify their forests in our Group scheme to gain preferential access to the timber market through both enhanced rates on timber and improved access to the market.
Many forest owners also join because certification provides them with an internationally and independently verified standard that demonstrates sustainable forest management, which many of our clients see as a key part of their corporate social responsibility.
Led by a dedicated Certification Manager we have a team of experienced forest managers across the country who help woodland owners maintain compliance to the UKWAS.
Our audit team also adds value to the woodlands by advising owners on how to continually improve the management of their forests, providing advice on changes to legislation, funding streams, best practice etc.
How did you find the process of working with us?
The certification process with Soil Association Certification is fundamentally straight forward. Auditors are thorough, pragmatic and always helpful and we receive support from head office when required.
Why is it important to your business?
Forest Management and Chain of Custody certification is an integral part of Tilhill’s Timber Harvesting and Biomass divisions. We’re the UK’s largest timber harvesting company, supplying a wide range of clients, including our parent company BSW Timber, so our robust system provides absolute assurance to our customers that all timber products are sourced from forests meeting FSC and PEFC’s global sustainable forest management standards.
Top tip …
Keep it simple and seek advice. Chain of Custody can appear confusing, but if you establish simple controls for timber movement and documentation to support it, you’ll meet the majority of the Standards’ requirements.
