The UKFS is the technical standard for sustainable forestry practice in the UK and its content underpins delivery of policy in all four countries. It provides a framework for the delivery of sustainable forest management (a wide-ranging concept that incorporates the environmental, economic and social aspects of forestry) in the UK and is based on internationally agreed criteria..
A new edition of the UKFS (the 5th edition) was published on the 3 October 2023 on the Forest Research website.
The new 5th edition will be applied after 1st October 2024. Until then, the 4th edition (2017) should be used.