The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) publishes the ‘UK Government Timber Procurement Policy’ document.

Known as the ‘Timber Procurement Advice Note’ (TPAN), the document is currently in its 6th edition after being updated in March 2016 and not only provides advice on the sourcing and selection of timber, but also defines the government’s own timber procurement criteria for use within its estate – which says:

“The UK Government TPP requires that only timber and wood-derived products originating from an independently verifiable Legal and Sustainable source (which can include from a licensed Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) partner) will be demanded for use on the government estate – appropriate documentation will be required to prove it.”

Section 2.2 of the TPAN covers the Scope of application of the policy, which says: “The TPP is mandatory for all central government departments, executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) in England (referred to in this Note as ‘Contracting Authorities’). The policy applies to all virgin timber and wood-derived products used on the government estate including temporary site works and material supplied by suppliers.

TPAN also refers to the latest definition of the phrase ‘legal and sustainable’, which clarifies the meaning of both elements independently – what is ‘legal’ and what is ‘sustainable’. It also provides a defined procurement process for timber and wood-derived products in Section 3.

• A copy of the full TPAN document can be downloaded here
• Compliance is an essential part of the TPP and detailed online guidance on proving the legality and sustainability of timber and wood-derived products is provided by Defra, which can be viewed here
• Further downloads, links and other useful information on sustainability can be found on our website here