Natural England has published its corporate report titled ‘Natural England’s Strategy: Recovering Nature for Growth, Health and Security’, setting out a national framework to move beyond protection towards large-scale nature recovery. The strategy recognises nature as essential national infrastructure underpinning economic growth, public health and national security, and details how nature recovery will contribute to housing delivery, climate resilience and community wellbeing across England.

Natural England has published updated guidance on when farmers and land managers need a screening decision under the Environmental Impact Assessment (Agriculture) (England) (No. 2) Regulations 2006, SI 2006/2522, before making changes to uncultivated, semi-natural and rural land in England. The changes, made to the ‘Check if you need a screening decision’ guidance, clarify when a screening decision is required for agri-environment schemes, including Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes.

Natural England (NE) has published 'Recovering Nature for Growth, Health and Security', its strategic direction framework for 2025-2030. The framework outlines six priorities including: accelerating nature recovery, addressing environmental decline causes, and enhancing development partnerships. The strategy aims to meet the Environment Act target of reducing the declination of species and achieving protection for 30% of UK land and sea by 2030. NE cites current nature value to the economy at £1.8trn, with projected health benefits of £400bn. The strategic framework marks a shift from nature protection to active restoration, with implementation details expected in autumn 2025, following government funding decisions.

Natural England has updated its nutrient credit application form, enabling it to be used for any open nutrient credit round.

Natural England has updated its register of enforcement action. The register includes any civil sanctions, enforcement undertakings and prosecutions by Natural England to protect wildlife and the natural environment in England.

Natural England has published an updated version of its register of enforcement action. This register, which is periodically revised, provides a comprehensive list of civil sanctions imposed, enforcement undertakings accepted and prosecutions pursued by Natural England in its role of protecting wildlife and the natural environment. The document serves as a crucial resource for legal practitioners and stakeholders involved in environmental law compliance and enforcement in England.

When does Natural England investigate? There is an overlap between the responsibilities of the various enforcement bodies (eg the police, local authorities, the Environment Agency (EA), Natural England (NE), Natural Resources Wales (NRW)) that are responsible for crimes concerning the environment. In any environmental investigation, the starting point is always to establish which body is responsible for enforcement. For information on the powers held by other environmental enforcement agencies, see Practice Notes: • Environment Agency—powers to investigate environmental crime • Natural Resources Wales—powers to investigate environmental crime • Local authorities—powers to investigate environmental crime • Scottish Environment Protection Agency—powers to investigate environmental crime For information on the enforcement of environmental offences generally, see Practice Note: Environmental prosecution and enforcement policy. NE is an executive Non-Departmental Public Body sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) which was established to conserve England’s wildlife, land and seas. Natural England has limited statutory enforcement responsibilities. It deals predominantly with crimes affecting wildlife and its habitats. Specifically: • where

The Natural Resources Body for Wales is the environmental regulator for Wales. It was established as a statutory body by the Natural Resources Body for Wales (Establishment) Order 2012, SI 2012/1903 and became operational on 1 April 2013.

Natural Resources Wales and the Welsh Government have reported a 14.7% increase in fly-tipping incidents between April 2024 and March 2025, with 48,367 cases recorded by local authorities. During this period, Welsh councils issues over 1,500 fixed penalty notices and secured 69 prosecutions (the highest level of enforcement in six years). Householders who fail to use registered waste carriers may face a £300 fixed penalty.

Natural Resources Wales (NRW) is the principal regulator responsible for the enforcement of environmental law and the prosecution of environmental crime in Wales. The Environment Agency (EA) was set up as a corporate body in 1996 under the Environment Act 1995 (EA 1995). For information about its powers to investigate criminal offences, see Practice Note: Environment agency—powers to investigate environmental crime. Under the devolution settlement, most ministerial functions relating to the functioning of EA in Wales were transferred to Environment Agency Wales (EAW). EAW became an executive Welsh Government (at the time, Assembly sponsored body), remaining part of EA England and Wales, but directly funded by the Welsh Government. On 1 April 2013, NRW took over the functions of EAW. It was created by the Natural Resources Body for Wales (Establishment) Order 2012, SI 2012/1903, art 3 (the Establishment Order). NRW assumed the responsibilities of EAW, Countryside Council for Wales and Forestry Commission Wales by virtue of the Natural Resources Body for Wales (Functions)

This refers to the properties of naturally-occurring uranium as found in natural sources. It contains 0.7 percent uranium-235, 99.3 percent uranium-238, and a trace of uranium-234 by weight. In terms of the amount of radioactivity, it contains approximately 2.2 percent uranium235, 48.6 percent uranium-238, and 49.2 percent uranium-234.

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained. This Practice Note discusses the common law on highway diversions, explaining that it is the passage from A to B that is important, not the precise piece of ground over which the right to travel is thought to exist, and highway closure by natural causes. Moreover, it explains when a highway on or near to the coast is destroyed by incursions from the sea, the courts will not insist that the authority responsible for its maintenance must restore it to a usable state. Although the common law recognises the force of the maxim ‘once a highway, always a highway’, there are, of course, some exceptions. In R v Secretary of State for the Environment, ex p Burrows; R v Secretary of State for the Environment, ex p Simms, Purchas LJ said: ‘At common law the rule was and remains “once a highway, always a highway”.