Natural England moves SSSI consents to a new online portal

Natural England has moved its protected sites casework to an online portal, and shoots, wildfowling clubs and land managers working on designated ground must now use it for consents and notices. BASC alerted members to the change this week, warning anyone who manages land in or beside a Site of Special Scientific Interest to update their bookmarks.

What has changed for SSSI consents?

The digital service, run through the Defra forms platform, replaces the previous mixture of direct email submissions and manual application routes, and is now the primary road for statutory land management requests. It covers consents for operations requiring Natural England’s consent, known as ORNEC; agri-environment consents where a Sustainable Farming Incentive or Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier agreement needs SSSI consent alongside it; and all new notices of proposal.

Natural England’s own guidance page carried the new form from April, and the department says the structured questions capture the location, timing and operational detail of a proposal at the outset. The intention is to cut the back-and-forth that has lengthened determinations for land managers seeking permission.

Who does this affect on a shoot?

Anyone whose ground sits inside an SSSI, or whose work touches one. That includes wildfowling clubs on estuary and coastal designations, shoots with release pens, feed rides or tracks on notified land, moorland managers doing drainage, track or vegetation work, and syndicates running events or surveys on designated ground with the owner’s agreement.

The underlying law is unchanged. Every SSSI has its own list of operations that need written consent, published through the designated sites system alongside the site’s boundary map and its condition assessment. Carrying out a listed operation without consent, or ignoring the conditions attached to one, remains an offence that can bring an unlimited fine and a bill for repairing damage.

How long will a decision take?

Natural England says it will acknowledge an application within 10 working days and aims to decide straightforward cases within 28 working days, though it may take up to four calendar months where a case is complex. If no decision arrives inside four months, an applicant should treat that as a refusal. There are two months to appeal to Defra against a refusal, against conditions attached to a consent, or against a consent later withdrawn or modified.

Emergency work, such as protecting livestock during a flood, does not need prior consent, but Natural England must be told as soon as possible afterwards.

What happens next?

Land managers should submit future requests through the portal, and anyone who cannot use digital forms should contact Natural England directly to arrange an alternative. BASC’s conservation and land management team is taking member questions on consenting, and it is worth allowing the full determination window when planning work that has to happen in a particular season.