Statutory guidance

Penalty notices for animal health and welfare offences

Guidance for enforcement authorities who use penalty notices for animal health and welfare offences.

From:
Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs
Published
11 December 2023
Last updated
21 November 2024 — See all updates

Applies to England

Documents

Statutory guidance on the use of penalty notices for animal health and welfare offences

HTML

Statutory guidance on the use of penalty notices for animal health and welfare offences (web-accessible PDF)

Ref: ISBN 978-1-5286-4589-8, E03036818 12/23

Unnumbered act paper

PDF, 986 KB, 14 pages

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This file may not be suitable for users of assistive technology.

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email defra.helpline@defra.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

Statutory guidance on the use of penalty notices for animal health and welfare offences (print-ready PDF)

Ref: ISBN 978-1-5286-4589-8, E03036818 12/23

Unnumbered act paper

PDF, 1000 KB, 16 pages

Order a copy

This file may not be suitable for users of assistive technology.

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email defra.helpline@defra.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

Penalty notice calculator (animal health and welfare offences)

MS Excel Spreadsheet, 94.2 KB

This file may not be suitable for users of assistive technology.

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email defra.helpline@defra.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

Penalty notice reporting spreadsheet (animal health and welfare offences)

MS Excel Spreadsheet, 53 KB

This file may not be suitable for users of assistive technology.

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email defra.helpline@defra.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

Details

Enforcement authorities and constables must ‘have regard’ to this statutory guidance when deciding whether to issue a penalty notice and the amount to be specified in the notice.

Enforcement authorities and constables in England should use this guidance alongside the regulations that detail which offences are covered within the penalty notice regime.

You can use the calculator to determine the penalty notice amount.

You can use the reporting spreadsheet to submit information to Defra about the:

  • penalty notices you’ve issued (submit this information at the end of each financial year)
  • payments you’ve made to the consolidated fund

You must pay any money you’ve received from paid penalty notices (after deducting investigation and administration costs) into the consolidated fund.

Relevant legislation 

The Animals (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2023

Updates to this page

Published 11 December 2023
Last updated 21 November 2024 + show all updates

  1. Added spreadsheet for submitting information about penalty notices issued for animal health and welfare offences, and about payments made to the consolidated fund. Updated penalty notice calculator.

  2. Added penalty notice calculator that enforcement authorities and constables can use to determine the penalty notice amount.

  3. First published.

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