Natural roosting sites for bats have become scarce. The number of artificial roost sites for bats has therefore increased in the form of houses, bridges and barns. Bats and their roosts are protected by law and should be considered during the planning process. A roost is defined as any place that a wild bat uses for shelter or protection, and the roost is protected whether bats are present in it or not.
BCT does not have the capacity to get involved in individual planning cases. We therefore rely on concerned members of the public like yourself to help us protect bats by bringing matters to the attention of planning authorities when bats are threatened by development.
We have compiled advice below which may assist you in taking the appropriate action to protect bats.
More in-depth advice on planning and development can be downloaded here
Bats can be impacted by different types of development, more detailed information on each can be found in the links below.