A damaged and unsafe wall in Dulwich Wood will be moved forward and rebuilt to protect 34 trees from being felled.
The mature oaks in the Upper Dulwuch Wood site had breached the wall and made the footpath below unsafe.
Rebuilding the wall on the same site was discovered to be particularly difficult as their roots had grown underneath and there was limited space for construction.
A plan, developed with Dulwich residents, has now been approved which would give over pavement space to the trees and rebuild the 50 metre wall along the former kerb line.
More than 80 per cent of respondents to the consultation backed the idea.
Currently, the footpath has been boarded up to protect walkers from any falling masonry, with pedestrians redirected along Farquhar Road.
If the Magistrates Court approves the highway change, the council could begin work this year.
Cllr Catherine Rose, cabinet member for leisure, environment and roads said: “I’m delighted that we’ve been able to find a way to maintain these trees. We consulted with local residents and this is a reflection of all that hard work.
“We are committed to caring for and growing the 80,000 trees on council land, as is evidenced by our recently unveiled plans to plant 10,000 new trees across the borough.
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“We always do our best to find viable ways to maintain established trees and I’m delighted that our dedicated trees team has come up with this solution.”
