South Birmingham's older suburbs grew up under big trees. Moseley's limes and beeches, Selly Park's cedars and copper beeches, and the planes along St Agnes Road were planted for houses with deep gardens. A century on, many of them shade whole lawns or lean over roofs. A crown reduction keeps the tree but makes it smaller, and here it usually needs paperwork before anyone climbs.
Branch and Bramble doesn't do the work. We pass your enquiry to one local tree surgeon who covers B13, B14, B28, B29, B30, B31 and B38, and they confirm a fixed price with you directly.
What crown reduction costs in South Birmingham
| Tree size | Crown reduction | Pruning, crown lift, thin or deadwood |
|---|---|---|
| Small (under 5m) | £220–£300 | £180–£280 |
| Medium (5–10m) | £320–£480 | £280–£400 |
| Large (10–15m) | £480–£750 | £400–£600 |
| Over 15m | Free survey | Free survey |
A cherry or birch in a Hall Green or Kings Heath garden is usually a small or medium job, priced from photos. A mature lime or cedar in Moseley or Selly Park is often over 15 metres, so expect a free survey first. In those streets the six weeks' notice has to run before work starts, so the price you agree now is for a job a couple of months away. The crown reduction cost guide has worked examples.
What pushes the price up here
- Height. Trees over 15 metres are priced after a visit, and many of the mature limes, beeches and cedars in Moseley and Selly Park are that tall.
- What's underneath. Branches over a conservatory, a greenhouse or a neighbour's extension have to be lowered on ropes rather than dropped.
- Terrace access. In Kings Heath, Stirchley and Cotteridge the cuttings often go out through the house. That, or a tree more than 20 metres from the van, adds around 15%.
- More than one tree. Two or three trees cost about 1.8 times one; four or more about 2.5 times.
- Keeping the chippings. Leaving them for your borders takes about £75 off.
Pruning needs notice too
In a conservation area, the six weeks' notice covers pruning as well as felling. Birmingham City Council's rules for conservation area trees apply to any work on a tree with a trunk over 75mm across at 1.5m high. In this patch that means Moseley, St Agnes, School Road, Selly Park, Selly Park Avenues, Bournville Village, Bournville Tenants, Kings Norton, Northfield Old Village and Austin Village. A tree with its own TPO needs formal consent, and the council says that includes branches that encroach over your boundary.
The council's appraisals show what it is trying to protect. The 2022 St Agnes appraisal notes, with regret, that exceptional mature trees in private gardens there have been reduced over the past decade despite conservation area protection. The 2022 Selly Park appraisal says your notice must specify exactly what work you plan and why. A clear, moderate reduction to good pruning points is far easier to agree than a heavy cut. Topping is not something a good specialist will offer.
In Bournville, the Trust's 2024 design guide says branch thinning and maintenance that keeps a tree healthy doesn't need its approval, as long as the work follows the Arboricultural Association's standards. Inside the Historic Zone, which matches the conservation area, mature trees need both the council's and the Trust's permission.
Local trees and what they need
- Lime. Goodby Road in Moseley is lined with mature limes, according to the council's Moseley appraisal, and the St Agnes appraisal picks out the limes along Billesley Lane. A lime keeps growing from the new tips after a reduction, so expect to repeat it every few years.
- London plane. The St Agnes appraisal names street planes at the north end of St Agnes Road and the east end of Oxford Road. Those are council trees.
- Beech and cedar. Selly Park has large copper beeches, horse chestnuts and magnolias in Oakfield Road, a fern-leaf beech on Serpentine Road, and three kinds of cedar, including deodar and cedar of Lebanon. Park Hill in Moseley has mature beeches overhanging the road.
- Cherry and birch. Smaller garden trees across Hall Green, Kings Heath and Bournville. Cherries are best pruned in summer to cut the risk of silver leaf.
Street trees belong to the council
The street trees in Selly Park's grass verges, from tall limes to whitebeams and cherries, and the planes in St Agnes Road, are council trees. You can't arrange a crown reduction on one. Birmingham City Council is responsible for trees on its land and prioritises dead, diseased and dangerous trees. It also says it won't prune a tree because it blocks light or affects TV reception. You may cut branches overhanging your garden back to the boundary from your own side, but not if the tree has a TPO or is in a conservation area.
Nesting birds are protected by law, so heavy pruning in spring and early summer needs a careful check for active nests first. See our guide on nesting season.
What the job involves
- Agreeing the target. You and the specialist agree how much height and spread to lose, and which limbs matter most.
- Notice. In a conservation area, the specialist helps write the six-week notice, describing the reduction in metres and the reason for it.
- Climbing and cutting. A roped climber shortens each branch back to a side branch that can take over as the new tip, following BS 3998.
- Clearing up. Cuttings are lowered, chipped and taken away.
If a tree is past saving, see tree removal. Limes that were pollarded in the past may need pollarding instead.
Questions about crown reduction and tree pruning in South Birmingham
Do I need to give notice to reduce a beech in Selly Park?
Yes, if it's inside the Selly Park or Selly Park Avenues conservation area and the trunk is over 75mm across. Give Birmingham City Council six weeks' notice, saying exactly what you plan and why. If the tree has its own TPO, you need formal consent instead.
Does the Bournville Village Trust need to approve a crown thin?
Not usually. The Trust's design guide says thinning and maintenance that keeps a tree healthy doesn't need its approval if it follows Arboricultural Association standards. In the Historic Zone, mature trees also need the council's permission, so check that first.
Can I ask the council to reduce the plane tree outside my house on St Agnes Road?
You can report a concern, but the council won't prune just because a tree blocks light or affects TV reception. It prunes when a tree is dead, diseased, dangerous or obstructing the road, path or street lights.
Will the council accept a heavy reduction in the St Agnes conservation area?
It may not. The council's 2022 appraisal regrets that exceptional mature garden trees in St Agnes have been reduced over the past decade. During the six weeks after your notice, its option is to accept the work or make a TPO on the tree. A moderate reduction, clearly described, has a far better chance than a heavy cut.