Introduction
- Project description
- Work schedule to involve internal and external modification and modernization of the redundant Post Office House for shop and residential use. Impacts to a Brown long-eared bat satellite roost and Common Pipistrelle day roost(s) effectively protected and safeguarded during the works. Ongoing monitoring reveals a favorable status-quo.
- Ecologist’s name and contact details
- Tyrer Ecological Consultants Ltd
- Client’s name
- Eaton Estate
- Planning authority
- Cheshire West and Chester
- Brief site description
- Post Office House is located within the rural setting of Eccleston Village, Chester, and forms part of the Duke of Westminster’s Eaton Estate. The immediate habitat contains a range of habitats including buildings, church-grounds, park and pasture, species rich intact hedgerow and sporadic/individual deciduous mature tree cover; the habitats are amalgamated with surrounding grazed pasture and arable land with typical border features such as ditches, hedgerows and shelterbelts. Many local buildings are listed. The extending habitat contains abundant mixed and broadleaf deciduous woodland to the west of site, identified by the National Forest Inventory 2014. Two significant named features of value to bats and birds include the River Dee (SSSI, SAC), just 350 metres east of Post Office House and the Grade II Registered Parks and Gardens of “Eaton Hall”, found approximately 0.8km south, notable for its variety and rich array of habitat features, biodiversity and significantly dated buildings.
Pre-works roost structure
- Type of structure
- Building
- Use
- Other
- Condition
- Not In Use
- Approx. age
- 150 years+
- Main construction material of walls
- Brick
- Roof design
- Pitched Roof
- Roof material
- Slate
- Internal roof structure
- Timber Frame
- Lighting present on site and its proximity to the roost
- There is harsh street lighting to the front (south) of the building though it does not shine directly towards Post Office House.
- Photos or annotated figures of roost structure
Pre-works roost description
- Species
- Brown long-eared bat
- Number of bats max count
- 35
- Type of roost
- Maternity Roost
- Evidence of bats
- Bats Seen in Roost
- Roost location
- In Roof Void
- Aspect of roost
- Various
- Height of roost entrance (m)
- 6-7 metres
- Roost material(s)
-
- Brickwork
- Bitumen Felt
- Slate Tiles
- Wooden Boarding
- Timber
- Nearest commuting feature
- Treeline
- Distance to nearest commuting feature (m)
- 18 metres
- Internal temperature and humidity of roost
- 25 degrees Celsius
- Photos or annotated figures of roost
Proposed works
- Description of works
- The Eaton Estate aim to restore the building under its wider curtilage for part-residential and part-commercial use with the building occupied by a live in shopkeeper. The culture and legacy of the building will be maintained, and the works are short term, low impact and being designed with conservation in mind both in respect of the area and wildlife.
- Type of impact upon the roost
- Temporary Damage and Loss of Roost
- Relevant annotated figures
Proposed mitigations
- Type of mitigation
- Mitigation
- Specific technical detail of measure
- The proposed mitigation/modification will meet the needs of the population of bats which have/are used/using Post Office House by roost retention and by modification of access into the loft on the north-facing elevation (relative to BLE bats). The existing roost for Common Pipistrelle bats will be retained in their existing form; thus, the proposed mitigation is designed to negate any long term impact whatsoever upon both species’ identified at Post Office House. As there is a definitive opportunity to retain roosts at the building there was no requirement to consider alternative solutions.
Four access points will be created during a re-roofing and re-pointing scheme to allow bats access back into the loft space. The gaps will be dedicated for bats of bespoke dimensions and be in place permanently with the tenants informed the loft space is dedicated for bats at the behest of the Eaton Estate who own the building. Two 2F bat boxes will be set up on nearby Trees incase bats need to be translocated short term during works; they will remain extant thereafter.
- Relevant annotated figures
- Roost location
- In Roof Void
- Aspect of roost
- N
- Height of roost entrance (m)
- 7-8 metres
- Roost material(s)
-
- Brickwork
- Bitumen Felt
- Slate Tiles
- Timber Roof Frame
- Other
- Nearest commuting feature
- Treeline
- Internal temperature and humidity of roost
- 25 degrees Celcius
Monitoring data
- Length of monitoring proposed
- 2
- Frequency of monitoring
- x1 in 2020 x1 in 2022, active season of Bats (May - Sept)
- Type of monitoring
- Dusk and Dawn Survey
- Date and time
- 27th May 2020 22:00
- Evidence recorded
- Emergence of x3 Brown long-eared; emergence of x7 Common Pipistrelle bats.
- Interventions made
- None - following the second round of monitoring in 2022 any modifications will be recommended accordingly. This may include fewer/more access points, as neccessary.
Final details
- Lessons learned
- It can take time for mitigation to be judged a success or not, and monitoring should be staggered over a period of time as opposed to rushed within one bat season, when a variety of factors can influence the results, for example Weather.
