Penton Hook Island Closure update

Thank you to everyone who attended our public engagement on 20 March 2026. We are extremely grateful for the feedback provided by members of the public during this event and also through the online feedback survey regarding access across the islands and also the memorials situated on both islands.

Penton Hook Island remains closed to the public. Trees on both islands pose a high risk of injury to people from falling branches, collapsing trees and trip hazards.

Next steps

We have started working with a specialist contractor to develop this project further. They will be carrying out an updated tree survey over the next few weeks and evaluate the method that any tree clearance work can be carried out safely. Any tree clearance work will not take place before the end of bird nesting season (March – September).

We are in the process of securing some grant in aid funding to be allocated towards this project. Once the full cost of the project has been assessed, which will be based on the current status of the trees and the chosen method of clearance work, we will provide a further update on how any funding gaps can be resolved.

Once our contractor is able to define their detailed method of tree clearance work, we will use all the valuable feedback provided regarding memorials to minimise any impact. We will update this page with more information on this once it is available. For more information please visit this section.