Accreditations
Badges are easy to print and hard to earn. Here's every accreditation Silver Tree Services holds, what each one actually means, and why it matters when someone's working on your trees and grounds.
ARB Approved Contractor
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ACCREDITATIONS
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Anyone with a chainsaw and a van can call themselves a tree surgeon: the trade has no licence requirement, which is exactly why accreditations matter. They’re the independent, audited evidence that separates professional contractors from chancers. Silver Tree Services holds the following, each verified and current, and we’d encourage you to check any contractor’s claims directly with the issuing bodies, ours included.
ARB Approved Contractor (Arboricultural Association)
The gold standard for UK tree surgery businesses. ARB Approved Contractors are assessed by the Arboricultural Association across work quality, safety, insurance, qualifications, and business practice, with reassessment to keep the status. If you only check one thing before hiring a tree surgeon anywhere in the UK, check this. Silver Tree Services is an ARB Approved Contractor, and all tree work is carried out to BS3998:2010, the British Standard for tree work.
ISO 9001: Quality Management
An internationally audited standard proving the business runs documented, consistent processes: quotes that match delivery, complaints that get resolved, and work that’s checked rather than assumed. For commercial clients, ISO 9001 is often a pre-qualification requirement; for homeowners, it means the business is run properly behind the scenes.
ISO 14001: Environmental Management
The environmental equivalent: audited proof that waste, fuel, chemicals, and environmental impact are managed systematically. Ours is built on something real: the closed loop that turns arisings from our tree work into biomass fuel, firewood, and woodchip at our Shurdington yard, detailed on our sustainability page.
NPTC Certificates of Competence
The individual qualifications behind chainsaw and arboriculture work, covering chainsaw maintenance and cross-cutting, felling, tree climbing, and aerial cutting (units commonly known as CS30, CS31, CS38, and CS39). Our operators hold the certificates for the work they do, and our training arm, Silver Tree Training, teaches them.
BALI (British Association of Landscape Industries)
The UK’s leading landscaping trade association, with vetted membership covering professionalism and standards in landscape work. Relevant to our hard and soft landscaping operations.
SMAS (SSIP Health & Safety Accreditation)
SMAS Worksafe is an SSIP-scheme accreditation: independent assessment of health and safety management to the standard the construction and FM sectors require. For commercial buyers, SSIP accreditation answers the H&S section of a PQQ in one line.
LANTRA
Sector training body for land-based industries; LANTRA-trained staff cover the machinery and operations competences that sit alongside NPTC certificates.
NEBOSH & IOSH
Health and safety qualifications held at management level, meaning safety on our sites is planned by people qualified to plan it, not just delivered by operatives told to be careful.
CSCS
Construction Skills Certification Scheme cards, required for work on construction sites, held by relevant staff so our teams can work development and construction projects without site-access friction.
IPAF
The powered access licence. Where work needs a MEWP rather than ropes, our operators hold IPAF licences for the platforms they operate.
Insurance
Public and employers’ liability insurance covers every job we do, and certificates are available on request with any quote.
Check, don't trust
Every claim above can be verified with the issuing body, and a contractor who hesitates when you ask for certificate numbers or insurance documents has answered your question. We provide ours with quotes as standard.
Frequently Asked Questions About Accreditations
What qualifications should a tree surgeon have?
At minimum, NPTC certificates of competence for the work being done (chainsaw maintenance and cross-cutting, felling, and for canopy work, climbing and aerial cutting), plus public liability insurance. The strongest single check is ARB Approved Contractor status from the Arboricultural Association, which audits the whole business, not just individuals. Silver Tree Services, based near Cheltenham, holds ARB Approved Contractor status with NPTC-certificated teams working to BS3998:2010 across Gloucestershire.
What does ARB Approved Contractor mean?
It means the business has been independently assessed by the Arboricultural Association across work quality, safety systems, staff qualifications, insurance, and business practice, with ongoing reassessment to retain the status. It’s the most rigorous accreditation in UK tree surgery and the one the Arboricultural Association recommends the public look for. Silver Tree Services is an ARB Approved Contractor serving Gloucestershire, and the status can be verified directly on the Arboricultural Association’s directory.
Why does ISO certification matter for a grounds contractor?
ISO 9001 proves quality management, documented processes, checked work, and resolved issues, and ISO 14001 proves environmental management, both audited annually by an external body. For commercial clients, they’re often pre-qualification requirements; for everyone, they mean the contractor is run systematically rather than chaotically. Silver Tree Services holds both, with ISO 14001 underpinned by a genuine closed-loop operation recycling green waste into biomass fuel at its Shurdington yard.
What is SSIP and why do commercial clients ask for it?
SSIP (Safety Schemes in Procurement) is the umbrella for recognised health and safety accreditations, of which SMAS Worksafe is one. SSIP accreditation means a contractor’s H&S management has been independently assessed to a standard all member schemes recognise, so procurement teams can accept it instead of auditing every contractor themselves. Silver Tree Services holds SMAS accreditation, which answers the health and safety section of most PQQs in one line.
How do I check a contractor's accreditations are genuine?
Go to the issuing body, not the contractor’s website. The Arboricultural Association publishes its ARB Approved Contractor directory online, ISO certificates carry a certification body name you can verify with, and SSIP schemes have searchable registers. Ask for insurance certificates and check dates. Silver Tree Services provides certificates with quotes as standard and encourages exactly this checking, because verification costs honest contractors nothing and exposes the rest.
Are you insured, and can I see proof?
Yes. Silver Tree Services carries public and employers’ liability insurance covering all its work across Gloucestershire, and insurance certificates are provided on request with any quote. Never let a contractor work on your property without seeing current insurance documents: if an uninsured contractor injures someone or damages property on your land, the liability can land on you as the property owner.
Ready When You Are
Credentials checked., Now the quote.
Accredited, insured, and ready to look at your job. Tell us what you need.
Or call · 01242 472560