Hedgerow removal notices and the important hedgerow test
The Hedgerows Regulations 1997 run alongside planning permission, not inside it. Serve the notice, wait the 42 days, and know which criteria make a hedgerow important before you start.
A hedgerow removal notice goes to the local planning authority, and then you wait 42 days. That is the core of the Hedgerows Regulations 1997, and it applies whether or not planning permission is involved, because the two regimes run alongside each other rather than one inside the other. Remove a protected countryside hedgerow without serving the notice and you have committed a criminal offence, even if nobody objects and nothing else about the work needs consent.
Most breaches are accidental. A contractor clears a boundary to widen a gateway, the farmer assumes the land is theirs to manage, and neither realises a separate statutory process exists.
When a notice is required
The regulations bite on hedgerows that are 20 metres or more in length, or shorter than that but meeting another hedgerow at each end, and that grow on or next to land used for agriculture or forestry, for the breeding or keeping of horses, ponies or donkeys, or that is common land, protected land or a local nature reserve.
That definition excludes garden hedges. A hedgerow within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse, or marking the boundary of that curtilage, is outside the regime entirely. Which is why the same species of hawthorn is protected on one side of a field and unprotected on the other.
Removal includes acts that would result in destruction, so grubbing out, spraying off and repeated cutting to the ground all count. Laying, coppicing and ordinary cutting do not, because they are proper management.
The exemptions worth knowing
Several removals are exempt from the notice requirement, and the list is narrower than people assume.
Making an opening as a temporary replacement for an existing opening, or obtaining access in an emergency, are exempt. So is obtaining access where no other reasonable means exists, which is the exemption most often stretched beyond its limits. Work required for national defence, by a drainage body, for flood defence, to prevent the spread of a plant or tree pest or disease, or to prevent obstruction of an electricity line, is also exempt.
The one that matters most on development sites is removal carried out to implement a planning permission, or as permitted development. It is a real exemption and it is narrow. It covers what the permission authorises, and nothing beyond. Clearing a length outside the red line, or clearing before the decision notice arrives, falls outside it.
Where a new field entrance is being formed for highway reasons, the removal may need both a notice and separate highway consent, and the work should be planned alongside the evidence on visibility at a farm access.
The important hedgerow criteria
A hedgerow is important only if it has existed for 30 years or more and meets at least one of the criteria in the regulations. Those criteria fall into two groups.
The archaeological and historical group covers hedgerows that mark the boundary of a parish or township existing before 1850, that incorporate an archaeological feature, that are wholly or partly within an archaeological site, that are associated with a pre-1600 manor or estate, or that form part of a field system pre-dating the Inclosure Acts.
The wildlife and landscape group covers hedgerows containing species protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, those supporting a defined number of woody species within a 30 metre sample, and those adjoining a bridleway, footpath or byway with a qualifying species count. The headline figure is seven woody species in a 30 metre length, with lower species counts qualifying where associated features such as a bank, a ditch, standard trees or a connection to woodland are present.
The survey work is not difficult but it is specific, and the counting rules reward someone who has done it before. Where a hedgerow is likely to qualify, commission the survey before designing the layout rather than after.
Retention notices and what follows
If the authority concludes a hedgerow is important, it issues a hedgerow retention notice within the 42 days, and the hedgerow cannot be removed.
There is an appeal to the Secretary of State against a retention notice. The practical route for most landowners is different. Where the removal is needed for a scheme, redesign to retain the hedgerow and deal with the consequences in the layout, because a retained hedgerow usually helps the landscape case rather than hindering it.
Where the hedgerow is a real constraint on a development, set out the argument in the Planning Statement and support it with a Landscape and Visual Impact Assessment that shows what the hedgerow contributes and what replacement planting would deliver over time. Hedgerows also count in the statutory biodiversity metric through their own module, so removal has a measurable cost in units that has to be offset.
Where the regimes overlap
Three other regimes can apply to the same length of hedgerow, and each is administered by a different body.
| Regime | Administered by | What it controls |
|---|---|---|
| Hedgerows Regulations 1997 | Local planning authority | Removal of countryside hedgerows |
| Tree preservation orders | Local planning authority | Works to individual trees within the hedge |
| Protected species law | Natural England licensing | Nesting birds, dormice, other protected species |
| Cutting dates and buffer strips | Rural Payments Agency | Management of hedges on farmed land |
Nesting birds are the one that stops work most often. The breeding season runs broadly from March to August, and removing a hedgerow containing an active nest is an offence regardless of any hedgerow notice. Programme the work for the autumn and winter window, and have the hedge checked immediately before clearance.
Forestry operations near a hedgerow, and any soil handling conditions attached to a scheme, should be sequenced around the same constraints.
Species surveys and the hedgerow survey are best commissioned together. The woody species count that decides importance is done in leaf, broadly between May and September, and a bat or dormouse assessment of the same hedge line needs similar timing. Booking one visit for both avoids losing a season, which on a farm scheme can push a start date back a full year.
Penalties and evidence
Unlawful removal is prosecuted in the magistrates court and carries an unlimited fine. The authority can also serve a notice requiring a replacement hedgerow to be planted, and the replacement is treated as important for 30 years from planting, which is a long-term consequence for a short-term clearance.
Evidence is easier to assemble than it used to be. Historic aerial imagery, publicly available mapping and the authority's own records make it straightforward to show what was there and when it went. Assume any removal is visible.
Serve the notice, keep the receipt, and diary the 42 days.
This is general guidance rather than legal advice. Check the position with your local planning authority or a qualified professional before relying on it. PlanScope provides AI-assisted draft reports for planning applications. Reports should be reviewed before submission. We do not guarantee planning approval.
Frequently asked questions
Which hedgerows are covered by the regulations?
Hedgerows of 20 metres or more in length, or shorter ones that meet another hedgerow at each end, growing on or adjacent to land used for agriculture or forestry, for the breeding or keeping of horses, ponies or donkeys, or on common land, protected land or a local nature reserve. Hedgerows within or marking the boundary of a dwellinghouse curtilage are outside the regime.
How long does the council have to respond?
Forty-two days from receipt of a valid hedgerow removal notice. If the authority does not issue a hedgerow retention notice within that period, removal may proceed in accordance with the notice, and the permission to remove lasts for two years. Serving an incomplete notice restarts the clock, so include the map and the supporting information first time.
What makes a hedgerow important?
It has to be at least 30 years old and meet at least one criterion in the regulations. Those cover archaeology and history, such as marking a pre-1850 parish boundary or forming part of a pre-Inclosure field system, and wildlife and landscape, such as containing a protected species or a defined number of woody species in a 30 metre sample.
Do I need a notice if I already have planning permission?
Removal carried out to implement a planning permission is exempt, as is removal that is permitted development. That exemption is narrow. It covers what the permission actually authorises, so clearing a hedgerow outside the red line, or ahead of a permission being granted, is not protected by it. Check the approved plans before anything is cut.
What happens if a hedgerow is removed unlawfully?
It is a criminal offence, prosecuted in the magistrates court, and the court can impose an unlimited fine. The authority can also require the hedgerow to be replaced, and a replanted hedgerow is treated as important for 30 years. Enforcement is uncommon but not rare, and aerial imagery makes historic removals easy to evidence.
Sources and further reading
This article is general guidance about the planning system in England and, where stated, the rest of the UK. It is not legal or professional advice. Check your local planning authority’s validation requirements and take professional advice for your specific site.