Need a bat survey for your planning application? Find out more or drop us a line.
Bats and their roosting sites are protected under UK and European law. It is an offence to kill, injure, capture or disturb bats, or damage/ destroy/ obstruct access to a bat roost.
The presence of bats does not mean that development of a site or the granting of planning permission is not possible, assuming appropriate and robust surveys have been undertaken.
Surveys offered
Typically, bat surveys entail an initial inspection and then follow-up, more detailed surveys.
Initial inspection (preliminary roost assessment) which usually will involve a daytime visit to search for evidence of bats at your property/structure and determine its potential to support roosting bats. This can be undertaken at any time of year.
Dusk emergence/dawn re-entry surveys which will help confirm if a bat is using your building/structure. These surveys can only be undertaken between May and September when bats are active. Multiple surveys can also be necessary between that time.
…and if bats are found to be roosting
If the surveys confirm that bats are roosting within the property/structure and the works that are proposed will affect them, it will be necessary to obtain a mitigation licence before works take place, but after planning permission (if needed) has been secured.
A European Protected Species Mitigation Licence or a Bat Mitigation Class Licence (formally the Bat Low Impact Class Licence) will be required which will provide the detailed steps that will be implemented to help minimise the risk to bats and is issued by Natural England.
At Deepdene Ecology, we pride ourselves on our bat capabilities and the use of technology where appropriate, to minimise the expense to the client. We have an enviable track record of undertaking work that results in securing planning permission and mitigation licences.
Deepdene Ecology Ltd 