The Sycamore Gap Tree, a sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus) which was believed to have been planted late in the nineteenth century near Hadrian’s Wall in Northumberland, was elected  England’s Tree of the Year in the Woodland Trust’s annual competition in 2016.  On 28 September 2023 the Tree was illegally felled.

However, the trunk grew new branches, and plants were grown from its seeds. In 2025 49 saplings (one for each foot of its height) grown from its seeds were planted by the National Trust at various locations throughout the United Kingdom.  Almost 500 places applied for a sapling, and among those which were successful was Greenham Common, Berkshire, where on 22 November 2025 a tree was planted near the Control Tower.

Greenham Common can be considered to be a particularly appropriate location for a Tree of Hope, between 1983 and 1991 US Air Force atomic missiles were housed on the site, becoming the focus of a Women’s Peace Camp, which existed from 1981 until 2000.

On 15 December it was reported on Herne Hill Forum Facebook that a similar sapling had been planted in Brockwell Park, in the London Borough of Lambeth, ‘intended as a symbol of hope for young people affected by violent crime’, and ‘a very welcome addition to the gorgeous trees in Brockwell Park already’.

Photographs taken 13 December 2025.