Do you need a planning-focused badger survey and sett assessment across Greater Manchester?
We can offer badger surveys backed by clear guidance, proportionate methods, and practical support to keep your project moving on schedule.
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Greater Manchester’s varied landscape includes pockets of woodland, urban fringe greenspace, railway embankments, parks, river corridors and allotment edges offers suitable habitat for badgers. Planning teams frequently request evidence where sett activity or potential habitat is identified.
A badger survey assesses an area to determine whether badgers are present, and whether they could be affected by development. Ecologists look for setts, foraging signs, and activity patterns, sometimes using motion cameras or tracking methods, to understand their distribution. The findings help ensure that construction or land changes avoid disturbing badgers and comply with planning regulations.
You may need a badger survey if your development involves:
hedgerow networks and pasture systems around Wigan
mixed farmland, woodland edges and valley systems near Rochdale
woodland blocks and plantation edges within Bury
farmland and settlement fringes on the outskirts of Bolton
canal corridors, railway cuttings and embankments along routes in Salford
parks, golf courses and estate landscapes on the edges of Trafford
These patterns mean badger activity is often present even where setts are not immediately obvious at the outset.
We support projects across Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Wigan, Rochdale, Oldham, Bury, Stockport, and Tameside, as well as surrounding areas.
Greater Manchester planning authorities require badger survey evidence where setts or suitable habitat are present to ensure development complies with the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 and national planning policy. Without early, proportionate surveys, applications are frequently delayed by validation queries, additional planning conditions, or seasonal restrictions, which can stall site programmes or even necessitate redesign.
Our specialist ecology team carries out a Badger Survey to identify setts, activity, and potential risk. You receive a clear, LPA-ready report detailing any required mitigation and timing measures, helping your project stay on schedule and compliant.
We provide practical, planning-ready badger survey evidence, giving your project team clear steps to follow, including:
Mapping badger setts and assessing activity
Identifying sett types (main, annex, subsidiary, outlier)
Evaluating potential impacts for planning purposes
Offering mitigation strategies and method statements
Guidance on licensing when required
Clear instructions for construction teams on-site
Trusted by local planners across Greater Manchester, our reports ensure your project can proceed efficiently.
Send your site details and programme. We confirm the correct level of survey.
Walkovers, sett assess-ments, camera deployment and activity checks.
Planning-ready reports with impact assessment, mitigation options and timelines for site teams.
Only if needed. PEA, EIA, and Protected Species surveysÂ
Need a badger survey in Staffordshire? Let’s confirm your site’s requirements and keep your project on track.Â
Badger surveys may be required where proposed development could affect badgers, their setts, foraging areas or movement routes. In Greater Manchester, this can include sites near railway embankments, canals, river corridors, parks, woodland edges, allotments, scrubland and urban fringe habitats.
Yes. Badgers can use urban and suburban areas where green corridors, gardens, railway lines, canal banks and unmanaged vegetation provide cover and food. Urban sites should still be assessed where suitable habitat or signs of activity are present.
A planning authority may request a badger survey if the site contains suitable habitat or if ecological records suggest badgers may be nearby. The survey helps show that protected species have been properly considered before the application is decided.
An ecologist will look for sett entrances, spoil heaps, bedding material, footprints, hairs, latrines, feeding signs, scratching posts and well used paths. These signs help determine whether badgers are using the site and whether development could cause disturbance or damage.
Development can often go ahead if badgers are present, but the impacts must be assessed and managed correctly. Depending on the findings, mitigation may include protective buffers, amended layouts, timing controls, fencing, a method statement or licensed works.
Brownfield sites may need badger surveys where there is scrub, banks, derelict land, railway edges, watercourses or unmanaged vegetation. These features can support badger movement, foraging or sett creation, especially where they connect to wider green corridors.
Badger surveys can usually be completed throughout the year. Survey visibility is often better when vegetation is lower, but an ecologist can advise whether the timing is suitable depending on access, vegetation cover and planning requirements.
Badger survey requirements depend on the site, habitat and proposed works. Authorities such as Manchester City Council, Salford City Council, Trafford Council, Stockport Council, Bolton Council, Bury Council, Oldham Council, Rochdale Borough Council, Tameside Council and Wigan Council may request badger survey information where protected species could be affected. Manchester City Council Planning: https://www.manchester.gov.uk/info/200074/planning
A badger survey provides clear evidence that protected species legislation has been considered before development begins. The report identifies constraints, assesses potential impacts and recommends mitigation to help support a lawful and responsible planning application.
A Greater Manchester badger survey report usually includes survey methods, site context, habitat features, evidence of badger activity, photographs, plans, impact assessment and recommendations. Where required, it may also include mitigation measures, working methods or advice on further survey requirements.
