Salts Wood in Boughton Monchelsea, Kent, is a newly planted community woodland of around 33 acres with 22,000 native trees. The parish has prioritised year‑round access, with hard‑surfaced paths in place and works from October 2024 scheduled to complete an accessible loop for wheelchairs and pushchairs.
Local delivery has been led by the Boughton Monchelsea Amenity Trust working with the Parish Council. Updates have been fronted by councillor Andy Humphryes, the council’s vice‑chair, who helped steer the design and early planting phases.
Project information shared by Maidstone Borough’s climate team indicates Salts Wood drew on carbon capture funding rather than a central grant. For comparable schemes elsewhere, the Forestry Commission’s England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) remains the principal route for capital support and maintenance.
Under current terms, EWCO can fund standard capital costs up to set rates, provide £400 per hectare per year for 15 years, and pay Additional Contributions for public benefits, including up to £3,700 per hectare for recreational access and up to £600 per hectare for woods close to settlements. In March 2024 the Forestry Commission increased several rates and introduced a £1,100 per hectare payment for low‑sensitivity land.
EWCO‑funded projects must meet the UK Forestry Standard, covering design, species choice and long‑term management. The scheme can also contribute to infrastructure that enables either woodland management or public access-such as surfaced paths and wayfinding-with planning checks required where relevant and a 40% contribution available for eligible items.
Salts Wood sits within wider national goals. Government policy aims to increase tree and woodland canopy cover in England to 16.5% by 2050, alongside the Environment Act 2021 duty to set a species‑abundance target for 2030 designed to halt decline.
Kent and Medway’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS), led by Kent County Council, ran a public consultation from 16 January to 12 March 2025, with publication signalled for later in the year. The LNRS maps where habitat creation-woodlands included-can deliver the greatest outcomes, providing an evidence base for bids and investment.
In Maidstone borough, residential schemes must deliver 20% Biodiversity Net Gain-10% statutory under the Environment Act framework and a further 10% required locally through the council’s Local Plan Review. In practice, well‑designed community woodlands near settlements can help meet both access and habitat objectives for local plans.
Beyond carbon sequestration, the measured benefits are practical. Defra guidance notes woodland planted in the right place can reduce flood peaks by up to 65% and improve water quality via riparian buffers, while Forestry Commission material highlights the health gains from access to green space and the potential savings to the NHS.
For landowners and councils planning similar sites, early choices shape finance and delivery. Those seeking carbon income should register with the Woodland Carbon Code before any on‑site works begin; those pursuing EWCO should check the low‑sensitivity map, assess eligibility for Additional Contributions, and build inclusive access into the initial design.