22 Jun 2026
,Germany
Scottish Woodlands has posted record turnover of £143.74 million for the year to 30 September 2025, up from £118.16 million in the previous period. The company has warned that the United Kingdom must significantly increase domestic timber production to reduce its vulnerability to import price shocks.
The forestry management firm attributed much of the growth to its December acquisition of RTS Forestry, which added offices in Crieff, Inverurie, Inverness and Hexham, along with a wood-fuel business and an infrastructure team expected to broaden the company's service offering. Managing director Ian Robinson said the combination of the takeover and strong underlying performance had driven the record result.
"The underlying performance of the parent company was very strong." — Ian Robinson, Managing Director, Scottish Woodlands
The enlarged group now employs more than 280 staff across 19 offices in Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales. In Wales and parts of western England, the business trades under the Flintshire Woodlands name.
Scottish Woodlands planted 2,750 hectares of new woodland across Scotland in 2025, representing approximately one-third of the national total. The company said it expects to maintain a similar share of Scottish planting activity despite a forecast decline in overall planting volumes in 2026.
Robinson acknowledged that new woodland creation in Scotland has become increasingly difficult and said the company is working with industry body Confor to identify and remove the barriers holding back expansion. The forestry sector regards faster woodland creation as critical to meeting both climate commitments and the UK government's housebuilding ambitions.
The company's strategic report underlines the broader economic case for domestic forestry investment, noting that the UK is the world's second-largest net timber importer after China, leaving supply chains exposed to overseas price volatility. Producing substantially more homegrown timber, the report argues, is essential to reducing that dependence.
Scottish Woodlands remains 80% employee-owned, with the remaining 20% held by sawmiller James Jones & Sons. The company has run a graduate development programme for a decade, an initiative designed to help address a persistent shortage of qualified forestry professionals across the industry.
