Unconverted stone barns and other farm buildings are not only attractive to house hunters seeking a unique home. Indeed, whether abandoned or in regular use, rural buildings are often home to bats and birds such as barn owls, swallows and house martins.

When performing a barn conversion it is very likely that a bat and owl survey will be required before planning can be approved and the need to accommodate these protected creatures should be identified as early as possible.

The presence of roosting animals does not prevent a conversion from going ahead but may affect the timing of the work depending on the species present and whether the site is a summer roost or a winter hibernation site. Planning may require features to be built into the design to allow the bats to continue to use the building.

A survey and appropriate mitigation can be produced by a licensed and experienced bat ecologist. If the survey is planned early in the development process, it can save the time and expense of changing plans after the application has been submitted.

Specialist companies that carry out bat surveys for development projects will survey any building, tree, woodland or site for bats or bat presence.

Bat surveys range from simple presence / absence studies to complex European Protected Species licence applications with Method Statement and Mitigation Proposals.