Badgers
Advice, licensing and legislation relating to badgers.
- Legal protection
- Advice and leaflets
- Licences and how to apply
- Bovine TB and badger control in England
- Contact us
- Further information
Legal protection
Badgers and their setts are protected under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992
, which makes it illegal to kill, injure or take badgers or to interfere with a badger sett. The term ‘badger sett’ is normally understood to mean the system of tunnels and chambers, in which badgers live, and their entrances and immediate surrounds. The 1992 Act specifically defines a sett as “any structure or place which displays signs indicating current use by a badger”. Guidance on interpretation of this definition: (29kb)
. Interference with a sett includes blocking tunnels or damaging the sett in any way. Please note the consequential amendments to the above legislation as a result of the Hunting Act 2004.
Activities affecting badgers or their setts which would otherwise be illegal can be carried out under licence where there is suitable justification and the problem cannot be resolved by alternative means.
Please note: licences to kill or take badgers are only issued in exceptional circumstances. The majority of problems posed by badgers can be resolved non-lethally, normally by the partial or complete closure of the sett of the badger(s) causing the problem under licence. See advice, licences and how to apply below.
Advice and leaflets
| Advice leaflet | Summary | Audience |
|---|---|---|
| Advice to householders TIN004 | Badger problems and solutions - primarily in gardens | Householders |
| Problems with badgers in rural areas TIN005 | Guidance on legal protection, agricultural and flood defence problems | Farmers, landowners |
| Badger problems: use of electric fencing to prevent agricultural damage TIN027 | Badger fencing - details for exclusion | Farmers, landowners |
| Badger gates in rabbit-proof fencing TIN026 | Preventing damage to rabbit fencing by allowing badger access | Farmers, landowners |
| Using one-way gates on badger sett entrances (use requires a licence) TIN025 | Advice on one-way gates for licensed sett closure. For damage cases apply on WML-A01: (279kb) | Householders, farmers, landowners |
| Forest operations and badger setts FCPG009 (Forestry Commission) | Advice for foresters on legal protection and problems with badger setts | Foresters |
| Badgers and development IN75 | Guidance on badgers and licensing for developments where a licence is required apply on WML-A24: (234kb) | Developers, ecological consultants |
| Guidance on what constitutes “disturbance” to badgers in their setts WML-G16: (25kb) | Advice to help understand what is considered to be 'disturbance' | General |
| Guidance on “current use” of a badger sett WML-G17: (29kb) | Advice to help understand what 'current use' means | General |
| TB in cattle: reducing the risk (includes guidance on badgers) PB4516 | Practical steps to reduce risk of TB in cattle | Farmers |
Additional guidance specifically related to licensing only is included in the section below.
Licences and how to apply
See our licences page for summary information on: Who needs a licence, what types there are and how long they take to obtain. Licences and advice are provided free of charge.
Application forms for individual licences
| Application form/example case | Guidance | Report/Renewal |
|---|---|---|
| In relation to development: WML-A24: (234kb) Please note from 1 January 2011 the Citizens charter response time will be 30 days for these cases. (e.g. housing developments, pipelines, new fences) | WML-LR24: (215kb) | |
| In relation to damage, agriculture, forestry, drainage and preventing the spread of disease: WML-A01: (279kb) (e.g. badger setts in fields requiring cultivation or forests to be felled or thinned) | WML-LR01: (227kb) | |
| For the purpose of preservation or archaeological investigation of a scheduled monument: WML-A26: (203kb) (e.g. badger sett found within the area of an archaeological investigation) | WML-LR01: (227kb) | |
| For science, education and conservation, ringing or marking: WML-A25: (258kb) (e.g. trapping and marking badgers as part of a research project)
Template for References: (74kb) | WML-LR25: (106kb) |
Bovine TB and badger control in England
Latest news and background information on Bovine TB and badger control in England.
Contact us
- For licensing related queries
- Natural England’s bTB helpline for licensing and general enquiries:
- Tel: 0300 060 0550 - lines are open during office hours
- Post: Natural England, BM 6283, London, WC1N 3XX
- Email: bTB@naturalengland.org.uk
Further information
- Badger licensing reports: Published reports on licensing under section 10(2) of the Protection of Badgers Act are available between 1992-1999. The Management of Problems Involving Badgers 1992-1996: (1.62mb) and 1997-1999: (390kb).
- Review of badger licensing in England: In 2003 Defra launched a public consultation exercise to review licensing procedures in England under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992. A summary of responses: (172kb) received during the exercise was published.
- Badger licensing statistics:Summary statistics for numbers of badger licences issued by Natural England are available on this site.
