Hedges can be cut during the nesting season only where the work does not damage an active nest. The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 makes it an offence to damage a wild bird's nest while it is in use or being built, and important hedgerows in England are also subject to a fixed cutting ban from 1 March to 31 August. Anyone planning hedge work needs to check both rules before booking.
What the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 protects
Section 1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (WCA 1981) is the central rule for nesting birds. It makes it an offence intentionally to kill, injure or take any wild bird, or to take, damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while that nest is in use or being built. Eggs are covered as well. Section 1(5) separately makes it an offence to intentionally or recklessly disturb a Schedule 1 wild bird while it is building a nest or is in, on or near a nest containing eggs or young.
The fixed ban on important hedgerows in England
The Management of Hedgerows (England) Regulations 2024, a UK Statutory Instrument, prohibit the cutting and trimming of an important hedgerow from 1 March to 31 August, inclusive, unless one of the listed circumstances applies. The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) explains that this ban is there to protect active bird nests during that period. The RPA also notes that the regulations require a 2-metre buffer strip, measured from the centre of a hedgerow, where a green cover must be established and maintained. Some exemptions allow cutting during the closed period, and the RPA guidance sets these out, so read it before relying on one.
The fixed period applies to important hedgerows as defined in the Regulations. A hedge outside that definition is not covered by the 1 March to 31 August ban, but it remains subject to the WCA 1981 in the same way as every other hedge.
Timing for garden and other hedges
Checklist before any hedge is cut
- Check the whole hedge, including the inside of dense growth, for active nests before work starts.
- If you find an active nest, leave that section alone. Damaging a nest that is in use or being built is an offence under the WCA 1981.
- Confirm whether the hedge is an important hedgerow in England. If it is, do not cut or trim it from 1 March to 31 August unless an exemption in the RPA guidance clearly applies.
- Where the buffer strip rules apply, keep a 2-metre buffer strip measured from the centre of the hedgerow, with green cover established and maintained.
- Check the hedge again before starting work, since nests in use are protected under the WCA 1981 whatever the time of year.
- Ask the contractor to confirm in writing that they will check for nests and know which dates apply.
Who is responsible when you hire a firm
The RPA states that the cutting and trimming rules apply to the person who actually carries out the work, which means they also apply to contractors who do the cutting. The WCA 1981 offence is not limited to landowners, because it applies to any person who commits it. A client who hires a firm should therefore confirm that the firm knows the dates and the checks required before any booking is made. You can browse trade services firms and ask each one how it manages nesting birds on site.
Hedge work costs vary widely, and this article does not publish a figure. The main drivers are the length and height of the hedge, how much regrowth must be removed, access to the site, whether the work has to be timed around nesting birds or the closed period, and whether the cuttings must be cleared away. Confirm any figure directly with the company or, for council-managed hedges, with the council.
If you need hedge work in the capital or south-east London, you can compare landscaping firms in London or landscaping firms in Bromley, and ask each firm how it will check for nesting birds before starting.
