The UK Forestry Jobs Newsletter shares the best curated forestry jobs in the UK, from tree planting to director level.
Scotland has missed its woodland creation target again, with the latest figures showing 7,220 hectares of new woodland created in the year to March 2026, down from 8,470 ha in 2024/25 and well short of the 10,000 ha Scottish Government target for 2025/26. England also saw a small dip, with 5,250 hectares planted in 2025/26 compared to 5,770 ha the year before, meaning the UK overall created 13,480 ha of new woodland in 2025/25, down from 15,690 ha the year before.
For forestry businesses, this matters because woodland creation drives work for nurseries, planters, contractors, hauliers, agents, and managers across the UK. When planting slows, the knock-on effect is felt through the supply chain, from larger, grant funded projects to smaller farm schemes. Scotland still accounts for 54% of all woodland creation in the UK, but the second consecutive drop from the 2023/24 peak underlines how hard it is to deliver consistent expansion year after year when momentum matters so much.
Forestry is a ‘Long’ Game
That said, forestry is still a long game, and the long-term picture for timber, climate resilience, and rural jobs remains strong. Woodland creation will keep cycling through periods of pressure and recovery, but the need for trees, wood products, and well-managed land is not going away any time soon.
The challenge now is for politicians to support the industry, and for those in forestry to keep the industry resilient, back the businesses delivering the work, and make sure planting can happen at the scale the future needs.
Stay safe and enjoy the sunshine.
Jack
P.S. If you enjoyed this, why not send it to someone else who might like it. Oh and check out the job posts on our Facebook page - remember to like and share them!
🔦 Jobs Spotlight 🔦
In this section, we highlight standout opportunities each week, including selected sponsored listings.
What?: Experienced Machinery Operator
Where?: Guildford, Sussex
How Much?: £220 per day
What?: Forestry Consultant
Who?: TreeStory
Where?: Scotland-wide
How Much?: £Competitive + benefits + B-Corp
Forestry Fact Corner…
🌲 Fun fact: at the peak of new woodland creation in Scotland (15,040 ha in 2023/24), planting average of 2,000 trees per hectare means you’d have around 30 million trees. If you lined them up end to end with typical spacing, that stretch would be about 67,000 km or roughly 1.7 times the circumference of the Earth.
Interested in featuring a sponsored job listing in this newsletter? Email us at [email protected].