'Last resort' tree felling at second wood in Walton-le-Dale - here's where and when

A second Walton-le-Dale park has been hit by ash die back.

Yesterday the Post reported how Carr Wood, off London Way, was closed off to the public while Lancashire County Council staff began removing infected trees.

Now it has emerged that South Ribble Borough Council (SRBC) is to remove around 30 diseased trees from part of the Walton Park woodland, behind houses in Leigh Brow, Walton-le-Dale.

A letter sent to residents states: “Contractors will be on site between the 13th and 15th May 2026 to carry out ash tree removal works as part of the Council’s response to ash dieback disease in the borough.  The site has been assessed and inspected by officers from the council’s arboricultural team and thirty trees have been identified for removal. 

“The Council have been monitoring ash trees throughout the borough since 2012 when Ash Dieback was confirmed in the area. We are following guidance from the Forestry Commission and Tree Council in identifying areas within the borough where ash trees are symptomatic and assessing their condition using the Tree Council’s condition assessment criteria. 

“The Council only remove trees as a last resort or as part of a management plan for an area, and the trees are of such a condition that failure to remove symptomatic trees in the short term will lead to partial or whole tree failure in the future.”

What is ash die back?

Ash dieback is a fungal disease first seen in the UK in 2012. It is now widespread and causes leaf loss and in some cases can lead to tree death.

It is feared it could wipe out up to 85 per cent of Britain’s native ash trees, as they have not evolved natural defences against the fungus originally from Asia.