Guidance

Beavers: criteria for wild release

The criteria you must meet to secure a licence to release Eurasian beavers into the wild in England.

From:
Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs and Natural England
Published
28 February 2025

Applies to England

You must have a licence to release beavers into the wild.

Find out about applying for a licence from Natural England to release beavers into the wild. 

The wild release criteria are covered in:

You must read both pieces of guidance before you apply for a licence.

Initial considerations

Natural England will only consider your wild release project if the presence of beavers will support one or more of these positive outcomes:

  • restore natural processes or enhance degraded habitats - for example, improving habitats by creating wetlands
  • contribute to natural flood management - for example, reducing the risk of downstream flooding by slowing water flow
  • help reduce the effect of climate change - for example, by maintaining water supplies that provide insurance against drought, making the environment more resilient to extreme weather
  • improve water quality by filtering pollutants, capturing fine sediments, nitrates and phosphates
  • help reduce wildfire hazard
  • increase the genetic diversity of an existing beaver population if evidence shows that this is needed

Natural England will not consider projects in locations where the presence of beavers is likely to cause significant negative effects. This would be when negative effects cannot be avoided, mitigated or accepted, and far outweigh the expected positive effects. You must consider how releasing beavers could benefit or negatively affect:

  • the initial release areas
  • the wider catchment area
  • any locations the released beavers are likely to move to

Natural England will look at how you propose to reduce any risks and what the likely outcome would be if they allow your project to go ahead.

Land use and Infrastructure

There may be higher risk of beaver activities affecting:

  • extensive low-lying farmed land that relies on water management including water gates and sluices
  • large areas of land with high value crops at risk of flooding
  • infrastructure associated with vulnerable properties and flood risk, such as culverts and earth embankments
  • more densely populated areas with higher levels of infrastructure
  • roads and transport infrastructure next to water

Vulnerable species and habitats

You should avoid locations where beavers would have a substantial negative effect on vulnerable or endangered species or habitats, such as affecting the integrity of a designated site.

Criteria your project must meet

As part of your application for a licence, you will have to describe your project plan.

Your project plan must address the requirements set out under each of these criteria headings: 

  • identify the issue and form a conservation strategy
  • stay legal
  • maximise success
  • biodiversity outcomes: benefits and risks
  • socio-economic outcomes: benefits and costs
  • engagement, consultation and transparent communication
  • governance and resourcing
  • monitor and evaluate
  • management and exit strategy

Your project plan must normally cover at least a 10-year period .

Natural England could reject your licence application if your project does not meet all the criteria.

Identify the issue and form a conservation strategy

In your project plan, you must identify the purpose of the wild release and define your project’s future vision, goals and objectives.

You should consult experts and provide clear evidence on the design, benefits and risks of your project.

You can find out more in chapter 3 of the reintroduction code.

You must show how your project will follow the law. You must identify the permissions you need and how you will get them.

You can find out more in chapter 5 of the reintroduction code, and in the conservation translocations guidance for when you need a wildlife licence.

Maximise success

Plan for success by choosing an appropriate donor population and project area. Create a release strategy as part of your project plan.

Select an appropriate donor population

Any beaver you source for your wild release project must have been born in Great Britain (England, Scotland or Wales). This is to prevent the introduction of the Echinococcus multilocularis tapeworm and other exotic parasites from mainland Europe.

When sourcing and releasing beavers, you must liaise with the Beaver Trust who hold the national Eurasian beaver studbook. This will protect the long-term genetic health of the population. You can contact the Beaver Trust at info@beavertrust.org.

Choose the right project area

Your project area must be able to sustain your founder population. There must also be capacity to sustain a higher population as the beavers colonise and expand their territory.

You must provide information about your project area in your plan, including:

  • its location and the areas it covers
  • what watercourses and bodies of water are in the project area
  • a definition of the water environment in the project area - river basin district, management catchment or operational catchment
  • information on landowner permissions and landowners who could be affected by your release
  • any public access and recreational water activities
  • characteristics of the land – including topography, predominant habitat types and geographical barriers to beaver dispersal
  • information about bodies of water or catchment areas next to your project area

Use Catchment Data Explorer to find bodies of water and river basin management plans in your project area.

You must also justify why you chose your project area and its suitability for beaver wild release, including:

  • how the catchment and its habitats are suitable for beavers – including confirming there is enough foraging habitat for beavers
  • an estimate of how many beaver territories the area can support
  • how beavers will disperse in the project area and to adjacent areas
  • how you plan to maintain beaver genetic diversity

Add maps to your project plan that show the location of the project area and release areas.

Create a release strategy

Your founder population must have at least 3 unrelated beaver families. You should normally release beavers in pairs or family groups. You must release each pair or family at a separate release area within the project area. 

Your release strategy should include:

  • why you chose each release area within your project area
  • a polygon or central grid reference for each release area
  • names and grid-references for the watercourses and bodies of water next to each release point
  • how many beaver pairs or families you intend to release

You must explain the type of release you plan to use. There are 2 types of release:

  • hard release: where you release beavers into a new location without acclimatising them
  • soft release: where you allow beavers to get used to their new environment before you release them

Before your release, you may need to keep beavers in a temporary bio-secure holding facility. You will need to consider details of the project holding facilities in your release strategy, including:

You can find out more in chapter 5 and chapter 6 of the reintroduction code. 

Biodiversity outcomes: benefits and risks

You must consider the effect your beaver wild release could have on: 

In your project plan, you will need to provide information about any significant anticipated benefits and risks, for example:

  • the environmental and ecological benefits of your release – including how it will help towards environmental objectives for water bodies and protected areas and any risks involved
  • how your project will affect climate resilience, water quality, restoration of natural processes and morphological diversity
  • likely routes of beaver movement between catchments – including positive and negative effects to adjacent areas
  • areas where invasive non-native species have a high or moderate effect on the catchment area
  • significant spawning sites
  • fish migration routes – including for twaite and allis shad, Atlantic salmon, sea trout, European eel, smelt and river and sea lamprey
  • how you will achieve the expected benefits
  • the timescales for when any positive and negative effects are likely to occur

If present in your initial release areas, you will need to provide maps that show:

  • protected sites – sites of special scientific interest (SSSI), special protection areas (SPA), special areas of conservation (SAC) and wetlands of international importance (Ramsar)
  • nature reserves and priority habitats

Check this information with tools such as: 

Biodiversity outcomes: risk assessment 

You must complete a biodiversity risk assessment for any negative effects that your project could cause. This should include:

You must explain how you will deal with risks you identify both inside the project area and in surrounding areas. Any mitigation and management must be proportionate to the level of risk.

You can find out more about risk assessments and biodiversity outcomes in chapter 4 and chapter 7 of the reintroduction code. 

Socio-economic outcomes: benefits and costs 

You must consider the socio-economic effect of your wild release project. Think about the effects on the project area, places the beaver population could spread to and other surrounding areas.

In your project plan, you must describe how your release project will interact with:

  • any land, infrastructure, structures and fisheries
  • stakeholders, including the public

Explain how the benefits of the release may change as the project progresses.

If present in your initial release areas, you must provide maps showing the location of any:

Socio-economic outcomes: risk assessment

You must complete a socio-economic risk assessment for any negative effects your project could cause. This should include:

For example, in the risk assessment you could consider:

  • human livelihoods and businesses
  • property
  • land and land management schemes
  • assets and features of interest, for example, historical or geological features
  • recreational and other activities, for example, fisheries

You can find out more about risk assessments and socio-economic outcomes in chapter 4 and chapter 8 of the reintroduction code. 

Engagement, consultation, and transparent communication 

If you’re planning to apply for a licence to release beavers into the wild, you must engage with a variety of stakeholders. Read about planning stakeholder engagement for beaver release projects.

Governance and resourcing 

Projects need to show who will make sure the project plan is carried out and that they have enough funding. 

Governance: decide a structure 

Your project must:

  • appoint someone to represent the licensee
  • have a project steering group
  • appoint a local beaver officer
  • appoint a project ecologist

Other roles in the project are optional. 

Your project steering group will oversee the implementation of the project. The group must include representatives relevant to beaver wild release in your catchment area. 

The local beaver officer will report to the project steering group. Their role is to provide advice and support to deliver the project outcomes. 

Resourcing: secure enough funding  

In your project plan, you must include an estimate of the total budget for the project and a summary of the allocation of funds to:

  • staffing – including training, volunteers, equipment, and expenses
  • procurement of beavers – including transportation, veterinary time, disease screening and genetic testing
  • management and mitigation activities – including the equipment required for the activities
  • beaver monitoring activity
  • activities and actions to address identified risks
  • exit strategy

You must identify the sources of your funding and show whether it is confirmed or provisional. You will also need to provide: 

  • a timeline showing the start and end dates of all funding sources
  • funding review points

You can find out more in reintroduction code. 

Monitor and evaluate

Natural England will not approve your project unless you have a clear plan for how you will monitor and evaluate:

  • your project management and objectives
  • beaver populations in your project area
  • the main benefits and risks

The plan must cover the lifetime of your project.

Your plan must be specific to your project and consider the level of benefit and risk identified in your risk assessments. Your licence conditions might include additional monitoring. This will be assessed by Natural England on a case-by-case basis.

Gathering baseline data

You must collect baseline data from your project area before you release beavers. Your application pack will include information on gathering this data. This is to make sure you can compare data from before and after release.

Standardising data

To help you plan, read about the standard methods for monitoring beavers. You will also receive guidance on monitoring project benefits and risks in the licence application pack.

By gathering baseline and post-release monitoring data using standard methods, the data will help both your project and other projects nationwide.

You can find out more in chapter 11 of the reintroduction code.

Management and exit strategy 

Projects must be carefully managed and have clear strategies in place for when the project reaches its goals or is failing.

Management plan 

You must have a management plan in place for the duration of your project. 

Your plan must explain:

  • how you will establish relationships with operators and organisations working in the environment
  • how you will provide support and beaver management advice to local people – for example, land managers, river users, and communities
  • how you will make decisions about beaver management, including input from external stakeholders
  • the types of management activities you will carry out, who will deliver them, and the methods you will use
  • if you need any licences, permits or other permissions, and how you will get them

Once beavers have been deemed fit and healthy for release, they are considered to be wild animals and not the property of landowners or wild release projects. However, projects should try to mitigate negative effects either caused or likely to be caused from their release.

Exit strategy 

Your project must have an exit strategy that covers both successful delivery of the project, and early termination due to failure or other factors.

Chapter 12 of the reintroduction code tells you what your exit strategy must include.

You must consult with Natural England before you start your exit strategy.

You’ll need an exit strategy if your project has completed its goals, for example when:

  • all parties are satisfied that beavers have become an established part of the local fauna and flora
  • people are used to living alongside beavers knowing that efficient mechanisms are in place to support stakeholders

You’ll need an exit strategy if your project cannot continue. Natural England will specify the circumstances where you would need to start this process. For example: 

  • the welfare of the beavers becomes compromised – for example, by illegal persecution
  • your project runs out of funding, and you cannot find any more
  • beavers are causing significant negative effects that you cannot manage
  • a disease risk is present, such as the tapeworm Echinococcus multilocularis
  • serious or persistent non-compliance with licence conditions

In this case you will need to consider what will happen to the beavers and any key milestones.

Consult Natural England

If you have questions about the criteria or application process:

Email: wildlife@naturalengland.org.uk

Updates to this page

Published 28 February 2025

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