COOMBES Group
COOMBES Group is a UK family-run contractor delivering arboriculture, civils, environmental, forestry, and on-track plant services primarily to Network Rail, HS2, and major public-sector landowners across England.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2000
- HeadquartersPetersfield, United Kingdom
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What COOMBES Group does
COOMBES Group is a privately held, family-run UK contractor founded around 2000, headquartered in Petersfield, delivering integrated rail infrastructure and forestry services through five operational divisions: Arboriculture, Civils, Environmental, Forestry, and On-Track Plant. Its core activities include lineside vegetation management, ash dieback remediation, tree surveys, civils and geotechnical works, drainage, ecological surveys, habitat creation, timber harvesting, and on-track plant hire with POS licence management. The technology backbone comprises a specialised fleet of Road Rail Vehicles (RRVs), MEWPs, Sennebogen telehandlers, engineered excavators with forestry-grade grapple saws, whole tree chippers, and company-fabricated bespoke equipment including a proprietary tunnel cleaning system and hydraulic long-reach booms. Ancillary tooling includes ESRI ArcGIS-based GIS mapping with GPS for habitat classification.
The company operates a direct enterprise sales motion, securing long-term framework agreements with Network Rail and direct contracts with Train Operating Companies (South Western Railway), Tier 1 contractors (COLAS Rail, Octavius), and major infrastructure projects (HS2). Forestry and land management revenue is generated through timber harvesting and marketing contracts with Forestry England, The Crown Estate, National Trust, and private estate owners predominantly across Southern and Central England. Pricing is contract-based with no public disclosure; no subscription, SaaS, or transactional revenue streams exist. Customer concentration is heavily skewed toward UK rail infrastructure and government/public sector landowners. The company holds multiple regulatory accreditations (Network Rail Principal Contractor, POS Certified, RISQS Verified, Constructionline Gold, AFI, CIEEM Practice Members, ARB Approved, PCA, FISA) that collectively constitute significant barriers to entry in its served markets. COOMBES distributes services through its own workforce complemented by a growing approved subcontractor network across multiple Network Rail regions.
COOMBES Group firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- COOMBES Group
- Legal name
- COOMBES Group
- Website
- https://coombesgroup.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2000
- Operating status
- Operating
- Short description
- COOMBES Group is a UK family-run contractor delivering arboriculture, civils, environmental, forestry, and on-track plant services primarily to Network Rail, HS2, and major public-sector landowners across England.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
COOMBES Group industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Rail Infrastructure Services
- NAICS
- Support Activities for Forestry (1153), Farm Labor Contractors and Crew Leaders (115115), Landscaping Services (561730)
- SIC
- Forestry (800), Agricultural Services (700), Services-To Dwellings & Other Buildings (7340)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Forest Certification, Compliance & Chain-of-Custody Support (AFAMAAAH)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Landscape Construction Project Management & General Contracting (HSAIABAK)
Keywords
Where COOMBES Group is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Petersfield
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
COOMBES Group business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Rail Infrastructure Services: Long-term framework agreements with Network Rail and Train Operating Companies for vegetation management, civils works, environmental services, and on-track plant hire. Project-based contracts for specific works including timber harvesting, site clearance, and habitat creation.
- Forestry and Land Management: Timber harvesting and marketing services to landowners including Forestry England, private estate owners. Services include felling, extraction, marketing of timber, and woodland creation/management.
- On-Track Plant (OTP) Hire: Hire of modern on-track plant fleet with operators and POS licence management services for rail infrastructure projects throughout the UK
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
COOMBES Group product offering
Product offeringCore offering
COOMBES Group delivers integrated arboriculture, civils, environmental, forestry, and on-track plant services for the UK rail and land management sectors. The company self-delivers projects through five coordinated divisions, providing mechanised vegetation management, ash dieback remediation, tree surveys, fencing, buildings and structures maintenance, geotechnical and drainage works, tunnel cleaning, ecological surveys and habitat management, timber harvesting and woodland creation, and on-track plant hire with POS-licensed operators.
Product overview
COOMBES Group is a rail and forestry contracting company operating five integrated divisions: Arboriculture, Civils, Environmental, Forestry, and On-Track Plant. The company delivers single-source integrated services through combined expertise across vegetation management, civil engineering, ecological services, and specialist plant hire. The five divisions work collaboratively to self-deliver comprehensive projects for clients including Network Rail, HS2, and major rail contractors. Key service offerings include mechanised vegetation management using specialised RRVs and forestry machinery, ecological services with CIEEM-accredited ecologists, geotechnical and drainage works, tunnel cleaning systems, and on-track plant hire with POS certification. The company serves primarily the UK rail infrastructure sector with operations throughout most of the country.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Companies that use COOMBES Group
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
COOMBES Group technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
COOMBES Group partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.
- Forestry CommissioncoreWell-established relationships with Forestry Commission for Ips typographus management and spruce removal operations. Collaborates on plant health inspections and statutory plant health notices for demarcated areas.
- Local Environmental Organisations and TrustssupportingActively seeks collaborations with local environmental organisations, trusts, and community groups for biodiversity improvement initiatives. Partnership enables exchange of knowledge, resources, and expertise.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
COOMBES Group competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- VolkerRail: UK rail infrastructure specialist delivering track, signalling, civils and on-track plant services, frequently acting as a Tier-1 contractor on Network Rail frameworks. Comparable on rail plant, civils and OTP hire offerings.
- AtkinsRéalis (SNC-Lavalin): Global engineering and environmental consultancy with extensive UK rail and environmental ecology practices, including ecological surveys, GIS mapping and habitat management comparable to COOMBES's environmental division.
- Kier Group plc: UK infrastructure and rail services group delivering civils, environmental and vegetation works under Network Rail frameworks. Overlaps with COOMBES on integrated service delivery but at considerably larger scale.
- Balfour Beatty plc: Major UK rail infrastructure contractor delivering track, civils, and vegetation/environmental services as part of larger multi-disciplinary frameworks. Overlaps with COOMBES's integrated delivery model but operates at much greater scale across transport and construction.
Others
- Forestry England: Public-sector forest manager and COOMBES's largest forestry client, not a competitor, but operates in the same timber harvesting, woodland creation and forest management space — useful for benchmarking forestry capability and scale.
Direct peers
- McGowan Tree Services: UK-based rail-aligned arboriculture contractor offering lineside vegetation management, tree surgery and mechanised tree clearance to Network Rail and TOCs. Directly comparable on customer base, service mix, and rail accreditations (POS, RISQS).
- Gristwood & Toms (idverde): Long-established UK arboriculture contractor specialising in tree surgery, vegetation management and lineside works for Network Rail, now part of idverde. Highly comparable service portfolio and rail client base.
Emerging players
- WSP UK (environment & ecology): Global consultancy with UK rail-aligned ecology, arboriculture, GIS habitat mapping and biodiversity net gain services. Partial overlap with COOMBES's environmental division, particularly on PEAs, protected species surveys and habitat management plans.
Market position
Strengths1 record
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
COOMBES Group social profiles
Digital presenceCOOMBES Group financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
COOMBES Group leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
COOMBES Group funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
COOMBES Group M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about COOMBES Group
What does COOMBES Group do?
COOMBES Group delivers integrated arboriculture, civils, environmental, forestry, and on-track plant services for the UK rail and land management sectors. The company self-delivers projects through five coordinated divisions, providing mechanised vegetation management, ash dieback remediation, tree surveys, fencing, buildings and structures maintenance, geotechnical and drainage works, tunnel cleaning, ecological surveys and habitat management, timber harvesting and woodland creation, and on-track plant hire with POS-licensed operators.
Is COOMBES Group a public or private company?
COOMBES Group is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was COOMBES Group founded?
COOMBES Group was founded in 2000.
Where is COOMBES Group based?
COOMBES Group is headquartered in Petersfield, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does COOMBES Group make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Rail Infrastructure Services are the primary driver. The others are forestry and Land Management and on-Track Plant (OTP) Hire.
Who are COOMBES Group's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are VolkerRail, AtkinsRéalis (SNC-Lavalin), Kier Group plc and Balfour Beatty plc. Forestry England is listed as an others. Direct peers are McGowan Tree Services and Gristwood & Toms (idverde). WSP UK (environment & ecology) is listed as an emerging player.
Does COOMBES Group have an API?
No public API is recorded for COOMBES Group.
What industry is COOMBES Group in?
COOMBES Group's product category is Rail Infrastructure Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAMAAAH, Forest Certification, Compliance & Chain-of-Custody Support, with a secondary code of HSAIABAK, Landscape Construction Project Management & General Contracting. Its NAICS code is 1153 and its SIC code is 800.