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Group will camp 'for as long as needed' to save tree

George Carden/BBC A chalkboard which says Camp Oakley to the left, a blue two man tent is in the middle of the picture, and four residents from Save Cowfold Oak standing on the muddy floor looking at the cameraGeorge Carden/BBC
Residents in Cowfold will "stay as long as needed" to stop a tree being felled

Residents in West Sussex who have set up camp around an oak tree that is due to be cut down say they are prepared to stay "for as long as needed".

The group made the encampment around the tree in Acorn Avenue, Cowfold, after the parish council voted to carry out the felling at a meeting on 13 January.

Insurance company Direct Line Group has blamed the tree for causing subsidence to a nearby house and said it needed to be chopped down.

Cowfold Parish Council announced last week that "with a heavy heart" it would be reluctantly withdrawing its objection to felling the tree which is on its land.

The parish council said the decision had not been taken lightly, but that it must "consider the financial implications and responsibilities".

Gabi Barrett, a member of the Save Cowfold Oaks group, told BBC Radio Sussex that the council's decision was "an absolute shock".

"We got together and decided to try and oppose it," she said.

The group decided to set up camp and put together a community rota of people who would be around in case anyone came to cut down the tree.

Ms Barrett added: "We have already had people climbing the tree before the deadline to try and make sure it would make it very difficult for people to fell.

"We're prepared to sit here and we will stay here for as long as needed."

Gabi Barrett People standing at the camp - one person is holding orange rope ready to climb the tree. There are posters and poems on the tree, camp gear on the floor and a bell tent in the background and behind that there are houses which are part of the housing estateGabi Barrett
Members of the group setting up camp

Mike Nicholls, another resident, said: "My thoughts are that they should just leave the tree alone, it's not done anybody any harm and is good for the wildlife around here."

The tree is thought to be more than 100 years old.

A spokesperson from Direct Line said in a statement that, ultimately, it was the parish council's decision following an independent ecology assessment.

The company said under its customer's policy it was obliged to address the subsidence issue.

A Direct Line spokesperson said: "It is worth remembering that there is a homeowner who is being considerably impacted and repairs to their home can only begin once the underlying cause has been resolved."

Cowfold Parish Council was approached for comment.

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