Defra officials visit Wiltshire shoot to see gamebird biosecurity

Officials from Defra and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) visited the Great Durnford Estate, near Amesbury in Wiltshire, on 29 July to see gamebird biosecurity on a working shoot at first hand. The visit was arranged by the Game Farmers’ Association (GFA) and Rita Alves of GFA trade member Dalton’s Game Consultancy, as part of the sector’s engagement with government on avian influenza policy.

Who went, and what did they see?

Gordon Hickman, head of exotic disease and chairman of the National Avian Disease Core Group, several of his team, and vets and policy advisers from APHA were shown around the estate by head keeper Tom Paul. The GFA said the party was particularly interested in the transition of released pheasants into wild birds in the first weeks after delivery from the game farm, and in the practicalities of biosecurity on a shoot.

The tour of the estate and its release pens also took in the conservation work that runs alongside the shooting. Great Durnford supports a wealth of bird life, including skylark, stone curlew and eight species of birds of prey, and processes all the game it harvests, including venison, for its own use or through a select network of local businesses.

Why does the visit matter for shoots?

Bird flu rules have weighed on game farms and shoots since Defra amended the Avian Influenza Prevention Zone in August 2025 with Schedule 3 measures aimed specifically at gamebirds during and after release. The GFA has pressed since then for policymakers to see the sector for themselves, hosting APHA staff at a game farm training and awareness day in September 2025 and taking key Defra and APHA staff to a Worcestershire game farm on 26 June.

The association said the Great Durnford visit gave officials an insight into the role game shooting plays in the fabric of rural Britain and how disease control policy affects the sector. The estate is a member of the Trusted Game assurance scheme and achieved gold standard in this year’s audit.

What happens next

The GFA thanked Rita Alves and Dalton’s Game Consultancy, head keeper Tom Paul and the Great Durnford Estate for making the visit possible. The association’s full report of the visit, with photographs from the day, can be read on the GFA website.