Ecology Planning & Biodiversity Net Gain
Ecology Planning and BNG Assessment with Multi-Disciplinary Delivery
Our ecology planning team provides robust, planning‑led ecological surveys and reports to support development from feasibility through to consent. Services include Preliminary Ecological Appraisals (PEA), Ecological Impact Assessments (EcIA), habitat surveys and protected species assessments, ensuring planning applications are proportionate, compliant and evidence‑led. Our surveys frequently inform Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) requirements, mitigation strategies and habitat creation proposals, helping developers understand constraints early and unlock deliverable, commercially sound outcomes.
As trusted BNG specialists, we deliver Biodiversity Net Gain assessments and implementation strategies through close collaboration across ecology, arboriculture, landscape architecture and the wider project team. By aligning ecological objectives with informed tree management, sustainable landscape design and integrated planning strategies, we create multifunctional green infrastructure that supports development, delivers measurable biodiversity uplift and provides long‑term environmental and commercial resilience.
Selby Urban Village
ARBORICULTURE & ECOLOGY
Client
Haringey Council, The Selby Trust
Project Type
Urban Regeneration
Images
Karakusevic Carson Architects
Status
Planning Approved
Location
Tottenham, London
Selby Urban Village is a major urban regeneration and social housing development in Tottenham, designed to deliver high-quality homes alongside meaningful green infrastructure. TMA was appointed to support the integration of ecological and arboricultural principles across two linked sites located within the London Boroughs of Enfield and Haringey.
The project sought to demonstrate that urban growth and environmental sustainability can be delivered together. From the outset, biodiversity enhancement and tree retention were treated as core design drivers, not secondary considerations. The scheme required measurable biodiversity uplift while maintaining design efficiency within a dense urban context.
Hackney New Homes, De Beauvoir
ARBORICULTURE & ECOLOGY
Status
Phase 1 planning approved
Location
London Borough of Hackney
As part of the London Borough of Hackney’s New Homes Programme, the redevelopment of the De Beauvoir Estate sought to deliver new housing alongside improvements to the public realm and green infrastructure. TMA provided both ecological and arboricultural consultancy services to support the project through planning, design and tender stages, helping to ensure that biodiversity and tree protection were embedded within the development.
Retirement Village
ARBORICULTURE & ECOLOGY
Client
Audley Group
Project Type
Retirement Village
Location
Hampshire
Status
Complete 2026
Images
Audley Group
We were appointed as ecologists and arboricultural consultants to support the redevelopment of the Stanbridge Earls site in Hampshire, ensuring compliance with ecological legislation and best-practice tree management throughout planning and delivery.
Awards
Housing Design Awards — HAPPI Best Project Scheme (Winner, 2020)
UK Property Awards — Residential Development Winner (2021–2022)
WhatHouse? Awards — Silver for Best Retirement Development (2020)
Ecology Planning Projects
What is Biodiversity Net Gain?
Nature is infrastructure. When development leaves habitats richer than it found them, communities stay resilient, planning consents run smoother and assets hold long-term value. Biodiversity Net Gain is the policy mechanism that makes that measurable and mandatory.
Biodiversity net gain (BNG) became an applicable part of planning law in February 2024 and in principle mandates that most planning applications in England must now demonstrate at least a 10% uplift in biodiversity value compared with the pre-development baseline.
That uplift (net gain) must be secured for a minimum of 30 years through retaining, where possible, existing ecological value and improving upon it through on-site design, off-site habitat creation or the purchase of statutory biodiversity credits. Through effective ecology planning, these requirements can be integrated early in the design process, ensuring compliance while delivering meaningful and lasting environmental value.
