Overview
- The young tree grown from seeds of the felled Sycamore Gap was planted at Wray Castle in April 2026 and was removed from the site between 9 and 16 June.
- Cumbria Police have opened a formal inquiry into the theft and are asking the public to report information using crime reference CRI10053058.
- The sapling was one of fifteen distributed to UK national parks as a living legacy and formed part of the 'Branches of Care' wellbeing programme run with St Mary's Hospice.
- National Trust officials say the removal appears deliberate and have suggested the tree may have been taken for replanting elsewhere rather than pulled up recklessly, and they have appealed for its return.
- The theft has renewed public anger over the original 2023 felling of the Sycamore Gap and underscores the challenge of protecting sentimental conservation plantings on publicly accessible land.