The RSPB says that “Hedges may support up to 80 per cent of our woodland birds, 50 per cent of our mammals and 30 per cent of our butterflies. The ditches and banks associated with hedgerows provide habitat for frogs, toads, newts and reptiles.”

Vital wildlife habitats that provide food and shelter for many species, the Woodland Trust says that around 118,000 miles of hedgerows have disappeared since 1950 (about half the existing total), due largely to intensification of agriculture.

The loss has slowed since the 1990s, but neglect, damage and removal remain significant threats. Around 60% of remaining hedgerows aren’t in good condition.

‘Hedgerow’ is not defined in section 97 of the Environment Act 1995 or in The Hedgerows Regulations 1997.

Collins Dictionary defines a hedgerow as “a row of bushes, trees, and plants, usually growing along a bank bordering a country lane or between fields” and the Woodland Trust says “A hedgerow includes both the hedge and features such as banks, trees, walls, fences and gates. It may be ancient or newly planted, with a single species or many.“

A hedge is a row of a single type of plant species, and becomes a hedgerow when it includes other features within it such as trees, or a wall, fence or a gate.

A hedgerow is protected under the terms of the Regulations, meaning it cannot be removed without consent (from a Local Planning Authority or from the National Parks or Broads Authority if the hedgerow is within those designated areas), if it meets the following criteria:

Length: A hedgerow is protected if it’s:

1. more than 20m long with gaps of 20m or less in its length
2. less than 20m long, but meets another hedge at each end

Location: A hedgerow is protected if it’s on or next to:

• land used for agriculture or forestry
• land used for breeding or keeping horses, ponies or donkeys
• common land
• a village green
• a site of special scientific interest
• a protected European site such as a special area of conservation or special protection area
• a local or national nature reserve
• land belonging to the state

Important: A hedgerow is important, and is protected, if it’s at least 30 years old and meets at least one of these criteria:

• marks all or part of a parish boundary that existed before 1850
• contains an archaeological feature such as a scheduled monument
• is completely or partly in or next to an archaeological site listed on a Historic Environment Record (HER), (formerly a Sites and Monuments Record)
• marks the boundary of an estate or manor or looks to be related to any building or other feature that’s part of the estate or manor that existed before 1600
• is part of a field system or looks to be related to any building or other feature associated with the field system that existed before 1845 – you can check the County Records Office for this information
• contains protected species listed in the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
• contains species that are endangered, vulnerable and rare and identified in the British Red Data books
• includes woody species and associated features as specified in Schedule 1, Part II Criteria, paragraph 7(1) of the Hedgerow Regulations – the number of woody species needed to meet the criteria is one less in northern counties.

Note that a hedgerow is not protected by the Regulations if it’s in, or marks the boundary of, a private garden.

To be ‘important’ the hedgerow must (i) be at least 30 years old, and (ii) meet at least one of 8 set criteria. The criteria identify hedgerows of particular archaeological, historical, wildlife or landscape value and are listed in summary below.

The Regulations specify in detail how the criteria are met. The following is a simplified guide taken from apage on the Stafford Borough website (and managed by their Development Management Team).

A hedgerow is ‘important’ if it:
1. Marks a pre-1850 parish or township boundary
2. Incorporates an archaeological feature.
3. Is part of, or associated with, an archaeological site.
4. Marks the boundary of, or is associated with, a pre-1600 estate or manor.
5. Forms an integral part of a pre-Parliamentary enclosure field system.
6. Contains certain categories of species of birds, animals or plants listed in the Wildlife and Countryside Act or Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) publications.
7. Within an average 30m length, includes:
(a) at least 6 woody species
(b) at least 5 woody species, and at least 3 associated features;
(c) at least 5 woody species, including a black-poplar tree, or large-leaved lime, or small leaved lime, or wild service-tree; or
(d) at least 4 woody species, and has at least 4 associated features.
(e) at least 4 woody species, has at least 4 associated features and runs alongside a bridleway, footpath, road used as a public path, or a byway open to all traffic

The list of 56 woody species comprises mainly shrubs and trees. It generally excludes climbers (such as clematis, honeysuckle and bramble) but includes wild roses.

The associated features are:
(i) a bank or wall supporting the hedgerow;
(ii) less than 10% gaps;
(iii) on average, at least one tree per 50 metres;
(iv) at least 3 species from a list of 57 woodland plants;
(v) a ditch;
(vi) a number of connections with other hedgerows, ponds or woodland; and(vii) a parallel hedge within 15 metres.

Some hedgerows are hundreds of years old and may be protected by old Inclosure Acts. These may require that hedges are retained and managed forever more. Anyone wishing to protect (or remove) hedgerows should therefore seek professional legal advice to determine whether the hedgerow might be protected by an Inclosure Act. (Many Inclosure Acts are deposited in Local Records Offices.)

Some planning permissions may require the retention of hedgerows on development sites and their removal would be a breach of that planning consent. Breaches of planning consent are enforced by local planning authorities.

Removing hedges when birds are nesting may see a developer or landowner in breach of The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which makes it illegal to:

• Intentionally take, damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird whilst it is in use or being built ( > Nesting birds, Nests and the Law).
• Intentionally take or destroy the egg of any wild bird, or trade any wild bird egg  ( > Wild Bird Eggs and the Law).

Similarly, bats may be dependent on trees in older hedgerows. All bats are protected under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) and the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010 (as amended). Seven bat species are also Priority species under Section 41 (England) and Section 42 (Wales) of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities (NERC) Act (2006), the Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 and the Wildlife and Natural Environment Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 (Greater Horseshoe, Lesser horseshoe, Brown long-eared, Bechstein’s, Barbastelle, Soprano pipistrelle and Noctule) ( > Bats and the Law)

If a hedgerow is listed as a special feature of a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSi) it would be illegal to intentionally or recklessly destroy or damage it or, cause or permit the act, without written consent from Natural England.

Not a hedgerow per se. A Tree Preservation Order is an order made by a local planning authority in England to protect specific trees, groups of trees or woodlands in the interests of amenity.

That would not normally include hedgerows, but a Tree Preservation Order could be used to protect individual trees within a hedge or an old hedge which has become a line of trees of a reasonable height.

There is NO statutory ban on hedge cutting or working on hedgerows between certain dates, but it’s RECOMMENDED that hedgerows or trees should not be cut or trimmed between March 1st and September 1st (inclusive) as this is considered the main nesting season for birds (however  birds may nest earlier depending on conditions, and the relevant section of the Wildlife & Countryside Act specifically refers to nests and eggs rather than to dates > Nesting birds, Nests, and the Law).

There are exceptions when hedgerows may be worked on within these dates:

England:

• The hedge overhangs a highway, road or footpath over which there is a public or private right of way and the overhanging hedge obstructs the passage of, or is a danger to, vehicles, pedestrians or horse riders
• The hedge is dead, diseased, damaged or insecurely rooted and because of its condition, it or part of it, is likely to cause danger by falling on to a highway, road or footpath; or obstructs the view of drivers or the light from a public lamp
• To carry out hedge-laying or coppicing during the period 1 March to 30 April (inclusive) – but NOT from May 1st until September 1st
• To trim a newly laid hedge by hand, within 6 months of it being laid
• Written permission from the Rural Payments Agency to cut or trim during the month of August for the purposes of sowing oilseed rape or temporary grassland during the same August.
• Written permission from the Rural Payments Agency to do so, to enhance the environment, improve public or agricultural access, or for reasons relating to livestock or crop production.

Wales:

• The hedgerow or tree overhangs a highway, road, track or footpath to which the public have access, and the work is necessary because the overhanging vegetation: – obstructs the passage of vehicles or pedestrians; – obstructs the view of drivers, or the light from a public lamp; or – is a danger to horse-riders.
• The hedgerow or tree needs to be cut or trimmed because it is dead, diseased or damaged or insecurely rooted, and is therefore likely to cause danger by falling onto a highway, road or footpath.
• The cutting or trimming is carried out in order to maintain a ditch.

The rules do not cover domestic hedges which have little protection, but may of course have birds nesting within them at certain times of the year when the Wildlife and Countryside Act will still apply.

A person can only remove a hedgerow if:

• it’s less than 30 years old
• they are the owner, tenant or manager of the hedgerow
• they are from a utility company that’s eligible to remove it

A proposal to remove a hedgerow must be discussed with the local planning authority (LPA) first to make sure the proposed work is legal.

The local planning authority has six weeks to determine the application and can either issue a Hedgerow Removal Notice (if the hedge is not considered ‘important’ or if there are grounds for allowing the removal of an ‘important’ hedgerow), or a Hedgerow Retention Notice (issued if the hedgerow is important and should be retained).

Hedgerow Removal Notices are only normally valid for two years after their issue. There is a presumption against hedgerow removal in the legislation.

A Notice of Intention to Remove a hedgerow must be given to a local planning authority if a hedgerow is on, or runs alongside:

• agricultural land
• common land, including town or village greens;
• land used for forestry or the breeding or keeping of horses, ponies or donkeys; or
• a Local Nature Reserve or Site of Special Scientific Interest.

But not if the hedgerow:

• is shorter than 20 metres (unless both ends join up with other hedgerow or it is part of a longer hedgerow); or
• is in, or borders, a garden.

(Gaps of 20 metres or less are counted as part of the hedgerow. A gap may be a break in the vegetation or it may be filled, for example, by a gate.)

A landowner also does not need to give Notice:

• To get access – either in place of an existing opening, provided that they plant a new stretch of hedgerow to fill the original entrance, or when another means of entry is not available, except at disproportionate cost. They are strongly advised however, to contact a local planning authority prior to undertaking this work;
• To gain temporary entry to help in an emergency; or
• To implement a planning permission granted by the Council (but in the case of permitted development rights, most hedgerow removal WILL require prior permission).
• Other categories are included in the Regulations http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1997/1160/contents/made

A local planning authority is the local government body that is empowered by law to exercise urban planning functions for a particular area.

Proposals to remove hedgerows need to be discussed with a Local Planning Authority (LPA) which will be one of the following:

• the local authority
• the National Park Authority for land within a national park boundary
• the Broads Authority in the Norfolk Broads
• the Council of the Isles of Scilly for land on the Isles of Scilly

Schedule 4 of The Hedgerows Regulations 1997 says that an Application for Hedgerow Removal Notice form should be used by a landowner, agricultural tenant, farm business tenant or certain utilities, such as gas companies that wants to remove a hedgerow, or part of a hedgerow, covered by the Hedgerows Regulations 1997.

The regulations are designed to protect important hedgerows in England and Wales. Anyone proposing to remove a hedgerow, or part of a hedgerow, covered by the regulations, must first notify the local planning authority by submitting a Hedgerow Removal Notice

A local planning authority cannot refuse permission to remove a hedgerow that is not ‘important’ (as defined above).

The authority will write to say that the hedgerow can be removed. The decision does not override any requirements to notify or obtain consent under other legislation, or any contractual obligations.

Grubbing or clearing is the complete removal of trees, shrubs, stumps and rubbish from a site. This is often at the site where a transportation or utility corridor, a road or power line, an edifice or a garden is to be constructed.

Grubbing is often performed following clearance of trees to their stumps, preceding construction.

No. ‘Remove’ is defined in section 97(8) of the 1995 Act as “uproot or otherwise destroy”, so the removal of a hedgerow also includes other actions that result in the hedgerow being destroyed.

‘Removing’ part of a hedge during coppicing, laying and taking away dead or diseased shrubs or trees is considered to be normal management and as long as the hedgerow is not destroyed is not covered by the regulations.

If an important hedgerow is removed without permission a local planning authority could direct the landowner to plant another hedgerow and have legal powers to ensure this happens.

A replacement hedgerow is automatically ‘important’ for 30 years after it has been planted.

‘Hooper’s Rule’ or ‘Hooper’s hedgerow history hypothesis‘ is a formula (Age =(no of species in a 30 yard stretch) x 110 + 30 years) developed by academic and scientist Max Hooper for dating hedges based on the number of tree and shrub species per unit length.

While the formula needs to be supported by “other dating techniques such as local history, old maps, study of the field patterns, other flora in the hedge” (according to Hedge Britannica) the number of tree and shrub species in a 30 metre length of hedge can indicate its age, with one species for each 100 years. A single species hedge is likely to be less than 100 years old whilst a 1,000 year old hedge is likely to contain ten to twelve species. Some species of shrubs and herbs are characteristic of old hedges or woodland, such as Spindle (Euonymus europaeus), Wild service (Sorbus torminalis) or Wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa).

The formula should be used with caution, because hedges may have been planted with a mixture of species and there is geographical variation (hedges in upland areas and the north of England are less diverse).

Ancient hedgerows, which tend to be those which support the greatest diversity of plants and animals and are therefore the most in need of identification and protection, are generally defined as those which were in existence before the Enclosure Acts, passed mainly between 1720 and 1840 in Britain.

• Incidents involving domestic or companion animals such as dogs (other than dogs being used to hunt mammals), cats, rabbits, domesticated birds, etc.

• Wild animals that have been involved (killed or injured etc) in road traffic accidents.

Road accidents with wild animals do not need to be reported to the police, but note that domestic animals (as well as goats, horses, cattle, asses, mules, sheep and pigs) come within the remit of the Road Traffic Act. If you have a road accident involving these animals you are required by law to report it to the police. If the wild animal is so badly injured in a road accident that there is no chance of recovery or the animal can not be returned to the wild then he or she may be euthanised, providing there is no appropriate long-term captive or semi-captive accommodation or when treatment would involve undue suffering or distress.

If we come across a wildlife crime scene or a dead bird/object that may be related to a wildlife crime every piece of information is – or might be – important, but it needs to be recorded properly and accurately for the authorities to have a chance of prosecuting an offender.

• Before we do anything else it is very important that we do NOT approach anyone we suspect of committing a crime – they may be violent and/or aggressive. This is especially true of badger baiters and hare coursers who are typically extremely violent. This must be a first priority!

 If we see a wildlife crime taking place (or someone is at risk of getting injured or is being threatened) call 999 immediately.

They will want to know what we can see happening:

• What sort of crime is being committed
• Are any firearms involved
• Could we or the public be in danger

To report a historic crime – that is, a crime that is no longer taking place – use 101 or a local organisation instead.

• If calling the police ask to speak to a Wildlife Crime Officer and make sure to get an Incident Report number.
• Please always follow any advice given and – if they are not available – insist that a Wildlife Crime Officer is made aware of your report.
•  Our options are wider if the event is over, and it may be preferable to talk first to a charity or NGO to get advice. Crimestoppers (an independent charity) can be contacted in complete confidence on 0800 555 111
• When thinking about reporting a crime it’s worth noting that only the police have statutory powers to make an arrest. RSPCA and RSPB investigation officers work with the police for successful prosecutions.

Reporting a wildlife crime (or even a suspected wildlife crime) is important for two reasons.

• If the event is still happening it may enable the authorities to catch the criminals ‘in the act’ (which means a higher chance of prosecution),
• and if the event is over a report can still help to build up a more accurate picture of what might be happening in a specific location or across the country as a whole.

Our help is always welcomed

• Whoever we decide to contact we have been assured that our help is welcomed and that if we’re in any doubt that what we’re seeing is a  crime we should report it anyway. Remember, if what we see ‘feels’ wrong, it probably is!

• Even if we’re not sure about what we’re seeing, we can take a photograph and email it to the police or an investigations officer – they are trained to quickly recognise for example when a snare is illegally placed, whether a trap is being used illegally, or whether a crime is being committed or not.
• We may help stop or solve future crimes by helping build up a pattern of behaviour in an area.