The Royal Forestry Society (RFS) is an educational charity and one of the oldest membership organisations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland for those actively involved in woodland management. The RFS has a broad membership which includes woodland owners, managers, countryside professionals (land agents, ecologists, conservationists), academics, students and others with a general interest in woodland management. Membership is open to all.

History

The Royal Forestry Society was established in 1882 in Northumberland, England. Originally known as the English Arboricultural Society, the organisation was founded by forester Henry Clark and nurseryman John W Robson, both from

Hexham Hexham ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Northumberland, England, on the south bank of the River Tyne, formed by the confluence of the North Tyne and the South Tyne at Warden, Northumberland, Warden nearby, and ...

. The Society's first President was John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham. In 1905 it was granted a Royal Charter by King Edward VII and was renamed the Royal English Arboricultural Society. It was renamed The Royal English Forestry Society in 1931, and in 1962 its title was changed to the Royal Forestry Society of England, Wales and Northern Ireland. A separate organisation operates in Scotland, the Royal Scottish Forestry Society, which was established in 1854.

Woodlands

Although the Society is not a major woodland owner, it manages three working woodlands: *Hockeridge and Pancake Woods in the Chilterns, on the

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

border and close to Berkhamsted and Chesham, gifted to the RFS in 1986 by Mary Wellesley, great-great-granddaughter of the Duke of Wellington; *a woodland in the

National Forest A state forest or national forest is a forest that is administered or protected by some agency of a sovereign or federated state, or territory. Background The precise application of the terms vary by jurisdiction. For example: * In Australia ...

, close to

Battram Battram is a hamlet forming part of the Ibstock civil parish in North West Leicestershire, England. Battram is named after Johnny Battram, who had the original cottage, but very much expanded with the coming of coal mining in the area. The vill ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...

; *Charles Ackers Redwood Grove and Naylor Pinetum at

Leighton Hall, Powys Leighton Hall is an estate located to the east of Welshpool in the historic county of Montgomeryshire, now Powys, in Wales. Leighton Hall is a listed grade I property. It is located on the opposite side of the valley of the river Severn to ...

near Welshpool, Powys, the largest and oldest grove of coast redwoods in Europe. These are managed as examples of good practice and lessons learned are shared with members.

Activities

The Society has 20 Divisions which between them organise up to 100 woodland field meetings a year on topics that span seed to sawmill. Annually: a top-level conference is held; there is a 4 or 5 day woodland study tour in England, Wales or Northern Ireland; Excellence in Forestry Awards take place, there is a travel bursary for forestry study abroad, and workshops, seminars and knowledge transfer events. Overseas study tours are held every other year. The RFS helps shape formal forestry qualifications and its own Certificate of Arboriculture is recognised across the sector; it encourages students with a range of awards, bursaries and internships; has launched a research programme with colleges and has partnered with a number of organisations to help share knowledge. A professional qualification is offered by the RFS, the Professional Diploma of Arboriculture. The RFS Teaching Trees project is expanding, introducing primary schools and their pupils to their local woodlands and their benefits to the economy, environment and society. The RFS maintains a library of forestry related books for members. The society is headquartered in the grounds of

Upton House, Warwickshire Upton House is a country house in the civil parish of Ratley and Upton, in the English county of Warwickshire, about northwest of Banbury, Oxfordshire. It is in the care of the National Trust. History The house was built on the site of the ...

, near Banbury.

Journal

The primary publication of The Royal Forestry Society is the ''Quarterly Journal of Forestry'' (since 1907).

Arms

References

External links

{{commonscat
''Quarterly Journal of Forestry''
Forestry societies 1882 establishments in England Nature conservation organisations based in the United Kingdom Environmental charities based in the United Kingdom Forests and woodlands of England Organisations based in Oxfordshire Environmental organizations established in 1882