National Bat Conference

National Bat Conference 2018 - Jessica Taylor

The National Bat Conference is the biggest event in the bat calendar! An opportunity to hear from experts, develop your skills and connect with bat workers from across the country - catch up with old friends and make new ones.

National Bat Conference 2025 - Booking is now open!

The next National Bat Conference will take place on 5-7th September 2025 at Durham University. Booking is now open for both in person and virtual tickets!

National Bat Conference 2025

National Bat Conference

Keynote speaker - Dr Ricardo Rocha

We are excited to welcome Dr Ricardo Rocha, Associate Professor of Conservation Science at University of Oxford to give the Keynote talk - Bat Ecology and Conservation in Island Ecosystems: a journey across continents

Workshop details can be found by clicking here.

We are grateful to Thermal Vision Ecology and Wildlife Acoustics for their sponsorship - other exhibiting and sponsorship opportunities are still available!

Programme

The programme will also include (more being announced soon):

Saturday:

  • Dr Ricardo Rocha - Bat Ecology and Conservation in Island Ecosystems: a journey across continents
  • Kit Stoner - Bat Conservation Trust Update
  • Rochelle Kennedy - Bats in dynamic agricultural landscapes: what are the benefits of mixed farming?
  • Dani Smith - Connecting people and landscapes in a changing climate

Sunday:

  • Giles Coe - Bats and Aerial Thermal Surveys
  • Paola Reason - Reflections on 30 years of bat work - then, now and the future
  • Annika Binet - Seasonal variation in bat activity levels at underground sites in Jersey
  • Oliver Aylen - Arid zone bats and fenced conservation reserves

As usual, the programme will include the BCT update and we will also hear from the winners of various awards including the Roost Award, the Pete Guest Award, the Vincent Weir Award and the Kate Barlow Award.

Ticket Prices

In-person tickets include attendance at the conference (including talks, workshops, panel discussion and networking), refreshments and lunch each day. 
 

In-person early bird prices - no longer available

In-person full prices - available from 16th June until 21st August

  • One day conference only (Saturday or Sunday) BCT member £135 / Non-member £140
  • Weekend conference only BCT member £180 / Non-member £185
  • Weekend conference ticket plus Saturday night halls B&B only BCT member £259 / Non-member £264
  • Weekend conference ticket plus Conference Dinner and Saturday night halls B&B only BCT member £314 / Non-member £319
  • Weekend conference ticket plus Friday and Saturday night halls B&B only BCT member £339 / Non-member £344
  • Weekend conference ticket plus Friday and Saturday night dinner/Conference dinner plus halls B&B only BCT member £394 / Non-member £399

Virtual prices - available from 16th June until 28th August

  • One day only (Saturday or Sunday) BCT member £45 / Non-member £50
  • Weekend delegate BCT member £90 / Non-member £95

NB virtual tickets will include all the talks live or as recordings if you can't attend live. There will also be a choice of 3 optional hybrid workshops. It will not be possible to include virtual attendees in all the networking elements, but there will be Zoom rooms open for networking with other virtual attendees during the break if you would like.

Late booking fees - £20 - will be incurred if booking tickets after the deadlines.

Sponsorship and Exhibiting

We are grateful to our sponsors Pettersson, Thermal Vision Ecology and Wildlife Acoustic.

We are looking forward to welcoming the following exhibitors:

  • Batability
  • Elekon
  • Nestbox Company
  • NHBS
  • Pelagic Publishing
  • Reflex Cameras
  • Sonobat
  • Thomas Jacks
  • Titley Scientific
  • Wildcare
  • Wildlife & Countryside Services
National Bat Conference

Conference sponsor: Thermal Vision Ecology

National Bat Conference

Conference sponsor: Wildlife Acoustics

Next: Workshops