Enforcement and Inspection
The Police are the main body responsible for enforcing wildlife laws related to protected species. The majority of Police forces have one or more Wildlife Crime Officers (WCO's) part of whose role is the investigation of wildlife offences. The WCO’s can be contacted by phoning your local Police Force using the number 101.
Natural England is responsible for taking enforcement action where a licence or permit we have issued is breached. A breach may be identified through our programme of targeted compliance visits and telephone calls or through a report from a third party. We take proportionate enforcement action in relation to any breaches discovered.
To help clarify our working relationship with the police we have a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and Countryside Council for Wales (CCW) relating to wildlife crime. More information on the MoU and Natural England's approach to enforcement for species offences and the other legislation we are responsible for are available on our enforcement pages.
We are the first point of contact for members of the public wishing to report the suspected poisoning of wildlife. If you suspect a pesticide poisoning you should report this using the FREEPHONE telephone number 0800 321600.
