Newark and Sherwood District Council has said that putting the original Bramley apple tree under a tree protection order (TPO) is unnecessary, despite calls from the local MP.
Robert Jenrick, the MP for the area, sent a letter to Council’s chief executive urging them to rush through an emergency TPO, following the news the cottage had been put up for sale.
A council spokesperson said: “It is located within the Southwell Conservation area and as such, it is already protected.
“An emergency TPO is therefore unnecessary and would not afford the tree any additional protection to that which is already in place.”
However, critics have said that a conservation area does not go far enough to protect the tree.
In his letter to the council earlier this week (May 9), Mr Jenrick said he “struggled to understand” why protection had been rejected.
A spokesperson for Mr Jenrick told CBJ News: “This is a very very significant tree to Southwell and the nation.
“It should be treated with the dignity it deserves.”
The tree sits in the garden of Bramley Cottages, Southwell which have been owned by Nottingham Trent University (NTU) since 2018 and have at times been used for student accommodation.
During their ownership of the homes NTU have also taken over care of the 220 year old tree, which is currently suffering from an incurable honey fungus.
The university has now put the property up for sale for £400,000 because they feel the age and configuration of the cottages makes them no longer suitable for student housing.
In response to the move a group of locals, conservationists, artists, scientists and heritage campaigners have come together to raise the funds to buy the property – a group which includes Celia Steven, the great-granddaughter of the man who first cultivated the Bramley apple.
The campaigners, who go by Mother Bramley Heritage Group, also want the tree to be put under legal protections, ideally through a TPO.
Dan Llywelyn Hall, from Mother Bramley Heritage Group, said: “It’s probably the most important apple tree in the world.
“It has great heritage to it, wonderful stories, anecdotes that are connected.
“I just feel that as a nation we need to support these wonderful heritage trees.”
Mr Jenrick has backed their campaign saying: “We are calling on all stakeholders, including Nottingham Trent University to make sure this tree is protected for future generations so they can engage with the historic nature of the tree like we do today.”
A TPO makes it an offence to cut down, top, lop, uproot, wilfully damage or wilfully destroy a tree without the permission of the local authority.
For trees within a conservation area, the local authority just needs to be informed of any planned work on trees six weeks prior to it taking place to give them an opportunity to consider whether a TPO needs to be put in place.
This means that as it stands the Mother Bramley tree could be at risk of being cut down by the future owners of the cottages.
Due to this distinction, campaigners and Mr Jenrick feel that the conservation area does not go far enough and will continue their campaign for more protection.
Nottingham Trent University were contacted for comment.
