Enfield Council has issued an emergency preservation order to protect what remains of a 500-year-old oak tree that was partially felled by a pub chain.
The council initially sent a criminal damage report to the Met Police after discovering the tree had been cut back.
However, the police concluded that there was no evidence of misconduct.
Pub chain Mitchells & Butlers arranged for the ancient oak to be axed after an assessment revealed its wood was dead and posed a health and safety risk.
A spokesperson for the chain that owns Toby Carvery told the BBC: ‘We are grateful to our expert contractors for warning us of this hazard so swiftly, allowing us to act before anyone was harmed.’
‘This was an important action to protect our employees and guests as well as the wider general public, to whom we have a duty of care.’
Leader of Enfield Council Cllr Ergin Erbil said: 'We were recently made aware of the felling of an ancient oak tree in Whitewebbs Wood, which occurred on 3 April. The Council was not informed of this incident until last week. Our teams immediately carried out a full site inspection to assess the damage after receiving reports of the damage done to the tree.'
He added: 'We have now placed a legal protection (Tree Preservation Order) on the tree and are looking at ways to help it grow back.'
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