CIEEM Revised Great Crested Newt District Licensing Position Statement (July 2020)

NatureSpace warmly welcome the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Managements (CIEEM’s) updated position statement on Natural England’s great crested newt District Level Licensing scheme. It is gratifying to see CIEEM acknowledge the conservation benefits of a strategic approach to mitigation, and the fact that off-site compensation can (when done properly) deliver better outcomes for biodiversity as well as developers. The CIEEM position statement is an insightful and constructive contribution to the development of District Licensing.

The NatureSpace scheme differs to the Natural England District Level Licensing approach that has been rolled out in some other parts of the country.

The NatureSpace District Licensing Scheme (regulated and licensed by Natural England) is currently operational in 19 local planning authorities who now hold their own organisational ‘District Licences’ and are able to offer this licensing alternative to developers in their areas. NatureSpace is working with several other planning authorities to obtain further District Licences this year.  

The CIEEM position statement offers a number of recommendations which the NatureSpace scheme specifically addresses. The NatureSpace scheme:

  • Provides a streamlined approach by integrating the planning and licensing decisions – drastically reducing planning delays and ensuring a co-ordinated approach to planning and licensing
  • Sets out a strategic landscape-scale spatial conservation strategy for great crested newts in each region
  • Embeds the mitigation hierarchy so that avoidance and mitigation are always considered before compensation
  • Provides both aquatic and terrestrial habitat compensation and includes ongoing management and extensive monitoring to ensure net gain is delivered
  • Sets out the economic case for creating high-quality (rather than the cheapest) ponds and terrestrial habitats ahead of impacts
  • Sets aside an endowment fund for managing and monitoring that habitat in perpetuity
  • Provides resources for Local Authorities to increase their ecological expertise so that they can deliver the scheme properly

The NatureSpace scheme is a public-private-NGO partnership approach that does not receive any Government or other taxpayer funding either in set up or operation. The leading national amphibian and freshwater NGOs (Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust and the Freshwater Habitats Trust) as well as the leading modelling and great crested newt experts at the Durrell Institute for Conservation and Ecology (University of Kent) have been instrumental in the design of the NatureSpace scheme and continue to advise and steer the scheme in implementation.  

To find out more please get in contact with us at info@naturespaceuk.com or 01865 688307.