Bat Survey in Berkshire

In order to inform the proposals for the renovation of a historic building within the grounds of a country estate near Hungerford in Berkshire, a suite of bat surveys were undertaken by Windrush Ecology Ltd. in 2013. The bat surveys found that the cottage was being used as a place of shelter and protection by a small number of common pipistrelle bats Pipistrellus pipistrellus, soprano pipistrelle bats Pipistrellus pygmaeus and brown long-eared bats Plecotus auritus and the conclusion was that a bat licence was required for the renovation and extension of the building.

A bat mitigation strategy was developed and an application for a European Protected Species Licence (EPSL) was submitted to Natural England. The successful bat licence application resulted in the implementation of a bat mitigation strategy developed by Windrush Ecology Ltd. The strategy included the erection of bat boxes, a pre-commencement bat emergence survey, careful timing of works, removal of roof tiles by hand under the supervision of a licenced ecologist, hand rescue of any bats found beneath roof tiles, as well as avoidance/minimisation of external lighting. The strategy also included the monitoring of new roosting features by a suitably experienced ecologist following the completion of the restoration works.

The project at Stype Grange is one of a number of recent projects involving historic buildings and historic landscapes. In recentr years, our ecologists have worked closely with property owners, land owners, architects and project managers on a number of similar projects in Berkshire, Oxfordshire and the Home Counties.