Natural England has licensed and authorised 11 new badger control areas to begin operations in 2020. It has also authorised the licence holders to resume operations in 33 existing badger control areas in 2020. Licence holders met all the criteria specified in Defra’s guidance to Natural England, dated August 2020.
Natural England has reissued the Annex A for 3 licences due to a change to their control areas as licensed in 2019. These areas were 34-Cheshire, 37-Devon and 40-Herefordshire.
It has also reissued the Annex B for all existing licences from area 11 to area 43 (inclusive). This follows a review of the conditions relating to licensed actions on or around protected sites.
Table 1: Badger control areas authorised in 2020
| Area number and county | Minimum number | Maximum number | Authorisation date | Year of operations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Area 11 – Cheshire | 228 | 514 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 12 – Devon | None | 416 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 13 – Devon | 86 | 617 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 14 – Devon | None | 328 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 15 – Devon | 306 | 542 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 16 – Dorset | 691 | 2321 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 17 – Somerset | 356 | 993 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 18 – Somerset | 108 | 360 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 19 – Wiltshire | 50 | 1067 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 20 – Wiltshire | 217 | 657 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 21 – Wiltshire | 625 | 1266 | 28 August 2020 | Year 4 |
| Area 22 – Cornwall | 216 | 1716 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 23 – Devon | 1505 | 2824 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 24 – Devon | None | 294 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 25 – Devon | 402 | 897 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 26 – Devon | 590 | 1104 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 27 – Devon | 9 | 127 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 28 – Devon | 34 | 299 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 29 – Gloucestershire | 185 | 890 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 30 – Somerset | 1063 | 2660 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 31 – Staffordshire | 1397 | 3516 | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 32 – Cumbria | N/A | N/A | 28 August 2020 | Year 3 |
| Area 33 – Avon | 226 | 650 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 34 – Cheshire | 1127 | 1939 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 35 – Cornwall | 1665 | 3128 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 36 – Staffordshire | 724 | 1272 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 37 – Devon | None | 366 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 38 – Devon | 1570 | 2696 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 39 – Dorset | 175 | 472 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 40 – Herefordshire | 719 | 1629 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 41 – Staffordshire | 149 | 727 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 42 – Wiltshire | 2310 | 4141 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 43 – Wiltshire | 1058 | 1846 | 28 August 2020 | Year 2 |
| Area 44 – Avon | 1514 | 2053 | 28 August 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 45 – Derbyshire | 2054 | 2785 | 28 August 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 46 – Gloucestershire | 599 | 812 | 28 August 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 47 – Herefordshire | 1505 | 2040 | 28 August 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 48 – Leicestershire | 1059 | 1435 | 3 September 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 49 – Oxfordshire | 1640 | 2223 | 2 September 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 50 – Shropshire | 4187 | 5676 | 28 August 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 51 – Somerset | 1636 | 2218 | 28 August 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 52 – Warwickshire | 1640 | 2223 | 3 September 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 53 – Wiltshire | 677 | 918 | 28 August 2020 | Year 1 |
| Area 54 – Lincolnshire | N/A | N/A | 4 September 2020 | Year 1 |
Licence holders carry out operations under a 4-year licence. This allows badger control to take place in the licensed control area every year between 1 June and 31 January inclusive.
The licence holder will decide the start date for control operations within this period.
Natural England has confirmed to the licence holders the minimum and maximum numbers of badgers they can remove.
Protected sites listed in the Annex Bs are not necessarily part of any active operations. These can and will only occur on protected sites where the landowner or occupier has granted permission.
The licences only permit badger control to take place outside these closed seasons:
- controlled shooting – 1 February to 31 May
- cage-trapping and shooting – 1 December to 31 May
