BS5837 tree protection fences erected on a new housing construction site in Chichester

Service type: Tree protection fencing BS5837.

Address: Longacres Way, Shopwhyke, Chichester, PO20.

Customer needs: We were contacted by a building contractor who was starting a project where new houses were going to be built that required BS5837 tree protection erecting on site before any construction work could begin. The tree preservation order was issued to ensure that the surrounding trees and roots were completely safe and would not incur any damage during this work. The site’s perimeter was approximately 300 linear metres which we priced for and included a rental period of 18 months. This large-scale setup aligns with our other BS5837-compliant projects, such as this tree safeguarding at the Forest School in Horsham, West Sussex.

Difficulties we faced: This was a straightforward job, and the site was easily accessible for our scaffolders to offload the materials required to put up the fencing.

What we did:

• We started by putting up the framework, which consisted of galvanised steel scaffolding tubes that would support the fencing to create a solid barricade to protect the trees. The whole perimeter measured around 300 metres long.
• As per BS5837 standards, three horizontal tubes should be placed within a certain distance from the ground, so they were fixed at heights of approximately 1.8 metres, 0.9 metres and 0.1 metres high.
• We then added an upright tube approximately every 3 metres along the framework.
• We connected diagonal tubes to the upright tubes, which were then attached to 3ft lengths fixed approximately 600mm into the ground to act as braces and provide additional support.
• Once the framework was in place, we began installing the panels.
• We used standard heavy-duty round-top anti-climb panels with 2 clips per panel.
• We fitted approximately 86 fencing panels and 172 fencing couplers which were connected to the temporary fences.

Hire period: The tree protection fencing was rented to our customer for a total of 18 months to allow ample time for all construction work to be completed. We also advised that a weekly hire period would be charged if they exceeded the agreed period, as this can occur on sites with material delays or bad weather.
If your site is subject to a tree and root preservation order, view our BS5837 tree protection fencing page to see how we safeguard trees and roots during construction. For more examples of our work locally, including tree protection and other access solutions, visit our dedicated scaffolding Chichester page to get a free scaffold quotation and site visit.