FURIOUS Woodford Green residents have slammed the council for attempting to cut down a protected willow tree.

Protesters pleaded with workmen to spare the historic tree, in Ford End, after spotting them preparing to fell it on Saturday, May 26.

Linda Barber-Webb, of Ford End, initially assumed the contractors were simply pruning the historic willow, which has been protected since 1981, but was horrified to discover the council had passed a felling order on the tree without notifying local people.

She said: "The council has declared its commitment to the local environment and now they must show they mean it.

"This tree and others like it around the borough are an intrinsic part of our environment and the council is meant to protect them.

"We feel the council have simply ignored our wishes and railroaded us into this."

Fellow Ford End resident, Stephen Webb, who presented a 30-name petition protesting against the move at a recent Area 2 committe meeting, claims the council's decision to grant the felling order is part of a worrying trend in Redbridge.

He said: "There have been a number of recent incidents in this part of the borough where trees with preservation orders on them have been cut down by the council.

"This decision was taken without local people being notified, and has left many of us questioning whether these preservation orders actually mean anything in practice."

A council spokesman said the order to fell the tree, which is due to be replaced by two Mountain Ash saplings, was only passed after extensive assessment of its condition and of the damage it was causing to a nearby house.

He said: "Notwithstanding its involvement in subsidence damage, this tree was considered to be in poor condition and had deteriorated significantly since it was first made the subject of a tree preservation order.

"The question of the timing of the work is beyond our control once consent it granted."

Work to fell the tree has been halted pending a report on the issue, which will be considered by councillors at the next Area 2 committee meeting.