Toby Carvery to fund orchard replanting as settlement for felling ancient oak
Toby Carvery owner Mitchells & Butler has settled a dispute over cutting an ancient oak, agreeing to fund orchard restoration and tree planting in Enfield.
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Mitchells & Butler, which runs Toby Carvery, has settled with Enfield council after the unauthorised partial felling of a 500-year-old oak in Whitewebbs Park triggered outrage and political attention. The deal includes payment for an orchard, 1,000 trees, legal costs, and treatment of the damaged oak.
A restaurant company got into trouble for cutting down part of a very old tree. To make up for it, the company will pay to plant a new orchard and more trees, like replacing a broken toy with a whole new set.
Analysis
What happened
Mitchells & Butler Retail, the company behind Toby Carvery, has reached a settlement with Enfield council after the unauthorised partial felling of a 500-year-old oak tree next to one of its car parks in Whitewebbs Park, north London. The incident, which happened in April 2025, drew public outrage and questions in parliament.
The council had begun eviction proceedings earlier this year, saying the chain’s actions caused major damage and shortened the tree’s expected lifespan. The settlement ends that dispute, with the company agreeing to pay for an orchard to be replanted in Enfield’s Ridgeway corridor, along with the council’s legal costs and treatment of the tree remains.
What the settlement includes
According to the joint statement, the money will help restore a publicly accessible community orchard as part of the council’s wider landscape restoration scheme. It will also fund the planting of 1,000 trees near the orchard. The statement says the project should restore landscape character, improve biodiversity, and provide locally grown fruit for residents and visitors.
M&B said it “sincerely apologises for the upset” caused by the felling. The company has consistently argued that the tree was cut for safety reasons because it was dying, though experts disputed that claim.
Wider context
The council had referred the matter to the Metropolitan police last year, but police said it was a civil issue rather than a criminal one. The case remains politically sensitive because the land around Whitewebbs Park is also tied to broader development and planning disputes involving Tottenham Hotspur, which has denied any connection between the oak felling and its own training complex plans nearby. The settlement closes one chapter, but the surrounding planning fight is still active.
Key points
- Mitchells & Butler, which runs Toby Carvery, settled a dispute with Enfield council over an ancient oak that was partly felled without permission.
- The settlement includes funding to replant an orchard, plant 1,000 trees, pay legal costs, and treat the damaged oak.
- The oak felling caused public outrage and questions in parliament after it happened in April 2025.
- M&B says it acted on professional advice for safety reasons, but tree experts disputed that explanation.
- The council says the money will support a community orchard, biodiversity, and locally grown fruit.
The settlement could help restore part of the local landscape and create a publicly accessible orchard for residents and visitors. If the replanting and tree restoration work is carried out well, the area could gain more biodiversity and more green space over time.
The deal does not undo the damage to the ancient oak, and experts said the tree has little hope of surviving. The case may also leave lasting reputational damage for the company if the public sees the settlement as a response to avoidable environmental harm.
