The Trust UK C16 Timber campaign – a landmark collaboration between the UK’s three largest sawmillers – continues to gather pace, as industry support and engagement strengthens across the construction and design community.
Spearheaded by BSW Timber, James Jones & Sons and Glennon Brothers, and in partnership with Confor and TDUK, the campaign has worked closely with construction industry bodies such as RIBA and IStructE. The collaboration champions the role of UK‑grown C16 timber, highlighting how domestic supply can help reduce the UK’s reliance on imported materials.
Recent months have seen a significant expansion in outreach activity, with industry advocates Peter Smith, architect at Roderick James Architects; Louise Rogers, impact manager at BE-ST; and Mark Kirk, technical director at Paramount Structures, all now supporting the campaign and delivering activity to architectural and structural audiences.
The campaign delivered a well‑attended webinar in conjunction with IStructE, providing structural engineers with clear, practical insight into the performance and reliability of UK C16 timber. This was followed by a successful CPD session at the Timber Design Conference, where architects and specifiers explored how UK timber can support low‑carbon construction and resilient supply chains. The campaign also engaged directly with designers, contractors and clients at Futurebuild, and will return again next year as interest in decarbonising the build environment gathers momentum.
To support the communication of key messages, the campaign has released a new video explaining how C16 timber supports the UK economy, environment and rural jobs. Available on Confor’s YouTube channel, the video is already being shared across industry networks and will form part of upcoming educational activity.
Collaboration remains central to the campaign’s progress. Working with RIBA, the campaign is preparing to host a major industry roundtable next month, bringing together leading voices from architecture, engineering and construction. Participants will include the aforementioned Peter Smith and Mark Kirk, along with representatives from other major architectural firms, such as ROAR, Hayatsu, Stolon Studios, Cooke Fawcett, Waugh Thistleton, dRMM, and John Sisk & Son. This diverse group reflects the campaign’s commitment to ensuring discussions around UK timber are informed by real‑world design and construction experience.
Looking ahead, the campaign will also support an upcoming IStructE industry briefing, entitled Strengthening the UK Economy: Why C16 Timber Matters, which will bring together engineers, policymakers and industry leaders to explore how greater use of UK timber can support national economic resilience and environmental goals.
The continued collaboration between the UK’s largest sawmillers, trade associations and industry experts is enabling the campaign to deliver trusted, technically robust content through webinars, CPDs, roundtables and major events. Together, these activities are helping to reshape perceptions of UK timber and demonstrate how domestic C16 can play a central role in creating more resilient supply chains and transitioning to a lower-carbon built environment.
The Trust UK C16 Timber campaign will continue to expand its programme throughout 2027, ensuring architects, engineers, contractors and clients have the confidence and information needed to specify more UK‑grown timber.
