Overview:
Working in partnership with Hackney Council, Marlborough Highways planted 5,000 new street trees in one of the largest schemes of its type in the country. The two-year project also included 1,000 new trees and 30,000 saplings in parks and green spaces throughout the borough, as part of the council’s commitment to reach Net Zero emissions by 2040. The initiative sees street tree canopy coverage increase from 20% to 30%, helping to create more attractive urban environments, while improving air-quality and reducing the risk of flooding through better drainage.
The Challenge
Hackney Council is dedicated to making the north London borough a greener and cleaner place to live and to work. As part of the organisation’s bold environmental strategy, councillors and planners set the ambitious goal of planting thousands of trees across the borough in just two years. As well as providing shelter and shade, and improving the appearance of the city landscape, tree planting reduces pollution by trapping harmful particles, and in turn releasing oxygen to the benefit of everyone.
The substantial programme of works required a complex schedule, involving storage, transportation, ground preparation, planting, and tree-maintenance. Heavy equipment was needed to deal with the large loads, while expert planning was essential to keep disruption to road users, residents, and local businesses to a minimum. A variety of native and non-native trees were available, with specialist botanical knowledge vital to ensuring that the right trees were chosen for the right settings.
The Solution
As Hackney’s Council’s principal highways contractor, Marlborough has a strong relationship with the planning team and a deep understanding of the borough’s urban and green environments. Working in partnership with our tree supplier, Marlborough devised a demanding programme of works, with up to 200 trees planted per week, dependent on weather conditions and the complexities presented on each road. Approximately 80 different species were chosen, with individual trees typically ranging from three to five metres in height, with an efficient system of labelling used to ensure that they always arrived on site in the best possible condition.
During works, there were occasions when trees did not grow as hoped, or they were damaged while in situ. In these instances, Marlborough provided the expert care and attention needed to restore and repair the trees, or quickly replaced them if they could not be recovered. Some specialist drainage works were required, and cages were installed to protect several saplings in the early stages of development. There was also the use of attractive granite sett details around some of the tree pits and a durable resin was needed to ensure plantings remained robust and secure.
Fact File
Client Hackney Council
Date July 2020 – July 2022
Duration 2 Years (Works took place over intermittent timeframes in line with client needs)
Value: £2.5 million
Project
- Storage, transportation and labelling of trees
- Ground preparation
- Planting
- Installation of granite setts
- Use of specialist cages where necessary
- The adding of high-performance resin as required
Team
- 1 full time Project Manager
- 1 Supervisor
- 20 Marlborough Operatives across multiple trades
Client savings
- Marlborough liaised directly with the tree supplier, meaning there was very little wastage, thanks to efficient storage and transportation methods.
- Marlborough maintains trees for 18 months after they are planted, ensuring that they grow and flourish properly.
- Any trees that become damaged are cared for or replaced.
Quote from client
“Our tree planting programme is one of the largest urban programmes in the country and is just one of the ways we are greening the grey in Hackney for all of our residents. Our programme began with a sharp focus on areas where there is less green space, so we can help to increase canopy cover, improve biodiversity, and create better neighbourhoods. Street trees bring incredible beauty to the borough, with often hidden benefits to our wellbeing.”
Cllr Caroline Woodley, Hackney Council
“One of the things I value most is their very collaborative and transparent team culture. It makes a big difference to have a contractor that wants to work closely with us and is supportive and responsive. With Marlborough, I get a team who are attentive, work collaboratively and honestly with me and don’t lose focus on delivering first class communications and compliance.”
“From the design stage, Marlborough has been fundamental in delivering the Broad Lane Square improvements scheme. During the works, not only did the team manage to keep to the programme, but they went the extra mile to ensure attention to detail and came up with innovative solutions to address issues encountered on site. My thanks on behalf of Haringey goes out to Marlborough for their dedication to deliver.”
“Working alongside our Term Service Contractor Marlborough Highways, we successfully completed renovations to the Crowstone Footbridge. The designs were provided by Marlborough, and the work was unique. The scheme was completed to budget and ahead of its programme duration.”
“I would like to thank you and your team for your efforts, the Marlborough crews were professional, courteous, and hard working all day and ensured the event went without a hitch. You and the team were a credit to the company, demonstrating commitment and support to the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham.”
“I just wanted to say what a pleasure it has been to work with Marlborough Highways over the last six months. The quality of work is superb, and there has been some excellent collaboration between Milestone and Marlborough to complete, what at times, has been quite a challenging scheme. I hope to work with Marlborough on another project in the near future.”
“Marlborough worked with us in constructing a 1.3km cycle track. There were a number of technical difficulties to overcome, and their gifted foreman worked to propose some innovative solutions to the challenges we faced. The result is a facility that the locals are proud of, providing walkers and cyclists with alternative access to the hospital and nearby school. The scheme was a lot of hard work, but well worth it.”
“Marlborough attracts people who take care and have pride in their work. Several gangs of Operatives worked tirelessly for six months to reconstruct drainage networks, lay more than 3km of high quality bespoke granite kerbs and granite channels blocks to ensure positive drainage. The technical compliance, attention to detail and level of quality finish along the entire carriageway was exceptional”.
“We saw huge benefits in appointing Marlborough as our full service contractor and we’re impressed – they’ve delivered consistent high quality service and superior quality control across every project. Marlborough, provide us with a ‘one-stop’ shop solution – we get the same quality of service and better control across all aspects of the project.”
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