Statutory guidance

Licence to possess and transport dead bats as part of the passive surveillance for bat rabies project (GL03)

Updated 1 January 2024

Applies to England

General licence GL03: the temporary possession and transport of dead bats for testing as part of the Passive Surveillance Scheme for bat rabies.

Overview

This licence allows the temporary possession and transport of dead bats so that they can be submitted to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) for testing under the Passive Surveillance Scheme for bat rabies.

If you are able to send the bat for testing you will help to increase knowledge of bat rabies in the UK.

Members of the public finding a live bat that is grounded or in a distressed state should not handle the bat but are advised to seek advice from the Bat Conservation Trust (BCT) Helpline on 0345 130 0228 or from their local APHA office.

There is also an advice note produced by the Health Protection Agency (see Information and Advice note c).

The possession or transport of live or dead bats for any other reason is not permitted by this licence.

Registration: there is no registration requirement.

Recording and reporting: none required.

Reference: WML – GL03.

Legislation

Statute(s): Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended) (‘the Habitats Regulations’).

Section(s): This licence is issued under regulations 55(2)(e) and (f).

Licence terms and conditions

Valid for the period: 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024 (inclusive).

Area valid in: All counties of England (landward of the mean low water mark).

Purpose(s) for which this licence is issued:

• preserving public health or public safety
• preventing the spread of disease

What this licence permits

Subject to all the terms and conditions of this licence and solely for the purpose(s) stated above, this licence permits Authorised Persons to:

• possess
• transport

any dead bat and/or derivatives of bats of a species listed in Schedule 2 of the Habitats Regulations, which is:

• horseshoe bats (all species) rhinolophidae
• typical bats (all species) vespertilionidae

Who can use this licence

This licence can be used by Anyone, except those convicted on or after 1 January 2010 of a wildlife crime* unless, in respect of that offence, either:

• they are a rehabilitated person for the purposes of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and their conviction is treated as spent, or

• a court has made an order discharging them absolutely

Any application by a person to whom this exclusion applies for an individual licence will be considered on its merits.

*: see Definitions

Definitions used in this licence

“Wildlife crime” means any offence under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017, the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, the Deer Act 1991, the Hunting Act 2004, the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996, the Animal Welfare Act 2006, the Protection of Animals Act 1911 (all as amended) or the Invasive Alien Species (Enforcement and Permitting) Order 2019.

Licence conditions

1. This licence can only be relied upon where the dead bat(s) and/or derivative of the bat(s) is:
   
   i. being possessed and/or transported solely for the purpose of submission to the APHA, to assist that Agency’s surveillance activities to prevent the spread of disease, and
   
   ii. was taken from the wild in the United Kingdom or the European territory of a European Union Member State without breaching applicable legislation of the United Kingdom or the European Union Member State in question.
   
   
2. Any person using this licence must send the dead bat(s) to the Chief Diagnostician, APHA Veterinary Investigation Centre, Woodham Lane, Addlestone, Surrey, KT15 3NB (Tel: 01932 341 111) within 5 days of the dead bat(s) coming into their possession
   
   
3. This licence does not confer any right of entry upon land and it is the responsibility of the user of this licence to secure, if necessary, access to land that he/she does not own or occupy in order to carry out any of the activities referred to in this licence.
   
   
4. No activities shall be carried out under this licence on a National Nature Reserve or a Marine Nature Reserve except with the prior written permission of Natural England’s ‘Responsible Officer’ for the relevant site(s) (contact details available from Enquiry Service – see below).

Important

This licence authorises acts that would otherwise be offences under the legislation referred to above. Failure to comply with its terms and conditions:

i. may be an offence against the Habitats Regulations or mean that the licence cannot be relied upon and an offence could therefore be committed. The maximum penalty available for an offence under the Habitats Regulations is, at the time of the issue of this licence, an unlimited fine and/or a six month custodial sentence

ii. may result in your permission to use this licence being withdrawn. Natural England will inform any person or organisation whose permission to use this licence is withdrawn in writing. This sanction may be applied to other similar licences, and

iii. may mean that you are not able to rely on this licence as a defence in respect to the prohibitions within the Animal Welfare Act 2006 or the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act 1996

If the activity that you wish to undertake is not covered by this licence, or if you are unable to comply with any of the terms and conditions which apply to the use of this licence, then you will need to apply to Natural England for an individual licence.

Issued by and on behalf of Natural England on 1 January 2024.

Information and advice specific to this licence

Bats and rabies

a. If you find a dead bat, before attempting to handle it, please contact the Bat Conservation Trust (BCT) Helpline on 0345 130 0228 or your local APHA office for advice.

b. The BCT can provide copies of form BAT 1 for you to complete and enclose with any dead bat as well as appropriate packaging to send it to the APHA. The form is also available online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bats-submission-for-rabies-screening.

c. Further advice is available online: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rabies-in-bats.

Caring for and euthanising sick or injured bats

d. Although all bats are strictly protected you do not require a licence to care for an injured or sick bat and neither do you need a licence to humanely euthanise a bat that has no reasonable chance of recovering. If the bat is so disabled that it cannot be released and you do not intend to euthanise it then you will need to apply for a licence to keep the bat permanently in captivity from Natural England.

Information and advice for all class and general licences

General information

e. Ordinarily, licences will be reissued on 1 January each year - you do not need to re-register for those with registration requirements. Please note, however, that they can be modified or revoked at any time by Natural England or the Secretary of State, but this will not be done unless there are good reasons for doing so. You are advised to check the terms and conditions of a licence prior to your first use of it each year in case of amendments.

f. The common name of the species given in a licence is included by way of guidance only; in the event of any dispute or proceedings, it is the scientific name of a species only that will be taken into account.

The limits of licences

g. Licences permit action only for the purposes specified on that licence.

h. Licences do not permit actions prohibited under any other legislation, nor do they confer any right of entry upon land.

i. Unless otherwise stated the provisions of Natural England licences only apply landward of the mean low water mark in England. The Marine Management Organisation is responsible for all licensing seaward of the mean low water mark.

Protected sites

j. You can search for and view details about all SSSIs by using Natural England’s Designated Sites system. The notification documents for each SSSI contain a list of operations that require Natural England’s prior consent. Owners and occupiers of land notified as SSSIs are required to give written notice to Natural England before either beginning any of these operations, or allowing someone else to carry out those operations. SSSI consent can only be given to a SSSI owner or occupier. It may be given with or without conditions, or in some cases, consent may not be granted. A similar process applies to public bodies and statutory undertakers (as defined under Section 28G of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended)) and this obligation applies even where the operations are carried out on land outside of the SSSI.

k. Please note that as the licensee you will not be able to undertake the licensed activity on a SSSI until the owner or occupier of the SSSI has applied for, and received, Natural England’s written SSSI consent. If you do so, you may be at risk of committing an offence. As the licensee, if you wish to exercise this licence on a SSSI you must contact the relevant owners or occupiers of the SSSI and ensure they give written notice to Natural England of their proposal to permit you to carry out licensed activity on their SSSI. You should wait until a SSSI consent decision has been received by the SSSI owner/occupier before you begin to exercise this licence on a SSSI. See GOV.UK for further information on how to get SSSI consent from Natural England.

l. In considering whether to issue consent or assent for activities likely to affect a SSSI that is a European Site, in other words a Special Protection Area (SPA) or Special Area of Conservation (SAC), Natural England will carry out a Habitats Regulations Assessment, as required by the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended) to ensure there will be no adverse effects on the European Site.

COVID-19 

You should stay at least 2 metres from live, wild mammals to avoid passing COVID-19 to them. Only capture or handle live wild mammals if necessary and avoid going within 2 metres of known breeding sites or regularly used resting sites.  

If you cannot follow these guidelines, then you should:  

• minimise the time spent in close proximity and handling mammals 
• limit the number of people that come into close proximity or handle mammals 
• keep animals separate from other individuals as far as possible 

Under this licence, you should follow good hygiene practices, including:  

• wearing disposable gloves, or clean and disinfected non-disposable gloves 
• wearing a face covering when handling and close to any mammal 
• washing hands before and after being close to or handling mammals  

Face coverings, non-disposable gloves and overalls or other clothing should be washed or disinfected between uses when handling mammals.  

You should not carry out activities under this licence if you feel unwell, test positive for COVID-19 or live with someone who has, or might have COVID-19.  

Any products used to clean and disinfect equipment should be safe to use should there be contact with animals and must be used at an effective and safe dilution rate. ‘Safe4’ is an appropriate disinfectant and is considered effective against the virus at a dilution of 1:50. Other products can be used to clean and disinfect equipment.

Contact Natural England for licensing enquiries

Telephone: 020 802 61089

Email: wildlife.scicons@naturalengland.org.uk

Wildlife Licensing, Operations Delivery
Natural England
Horizon House
Deanery Road
Bristol
BS1 5AH

For other enquiries use the Enquiry Service.

Telephone: 0300 060 3900

Email: enquiries@naturalengland.org.uk

Website: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/natural-england

WML-GL03 [version January 2024]