The short answer
Not on the part of the roof where a nest is occupied or under construction. Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 it is an offence to intentionally interfere with such a nest, and GOV.UK lists no licence for building work. The job is planned around the nest, and the rest can often carry on.
What the Act actually says
The relevant law is section 1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, which bites on someone acting intentionally. Its first subsection catches a person who removes or wrecks a wild bird's nest while that nest is occupied or under construction. It does not name a season, and for most birds it does not cover an old nest left empty from a previous year. Two words in that sentence do the work, and they are worth taking slowly.
The first is "intentionally". The offence is aimed at a person who sets out to remove or wreck a nest. The second is the status of the nest: in use, or being built. An old nest from a previous year, empty and not being rebuilt, is not covered by that part of the section. A nest with eggs, chicks or birds still carrying in material is.
A roofer who knows about a nest and goes on to strip the slope above it has crossed from accident to intent. That is why the stop-and-check habit matters on every job, and why a homeowner who spots birds going in and out of the eaves should say so before work starts.
Why there is no licence for building work
People often ask whether a licence can cover roof work that would disturb a nest. For wild birds, GOV.UK's guidance names no licence purpose that covers development or construction work. Licences exist for certain specified reasons, and building work such as a re-roof is not on the list.
The practical result is blunt. If a nest is occupied on the area that needs work, the choice is to wait, to work elsewhere first or to redesign the sequence, and not to apply for permission to remove it.
This is different from bats, which are protected under other provisions and where a licence may sometimes be part of the route. Our answer on what happens if bats are found during roof work covers that. Do not carry the bat rules over to birds, or the bird rule to bats, because the two sets of law are separate.
Notice that none of this gives dates. We do not tie the rule to a fixed season, because the test in the law is whether a particular nest is occupied or being built, which a person on site can check.
Planning the job around a nest
Most nests turn up in a few spots: a gap under the eaves, the end of a ridge, behind a fascia board, in a soffit box or at the top of a chimney. Our survey includes a look at these places from the ground and the loft, because it is easier to adjust a plan before the scaffold goes up.
If a nest is active, the options are:
- leave the area untouched and carry out the rest of the work first;
- move that part of the job to a later visit, once the nest has been left empty;
- change the order of work so that a different slope is done first;
- fit a scaffold and cover only where it does not block the birds' route in and out.
Chimneys deserve a mention of their own. A nest inside a stack may sit above where a repair is planned, and cowls and caps keep birds out in future. Our guide to birds nesting in a chimney goes through it.
None of these needs a long delay in the whole project. A re-roof is done slope by slope, so the one slope with a nest can wait while the others are finished.
If you find a nest partway through
The steps are short. Stop work in that spot. Leave the nest alone and do not shift it, even with the best intentions, because moving it is itself the act the law is aimed at. Photograph where it is, tell the owner and agree a revised plan.
A crew that finds a nest midway through a repair should not finish the job anyway on the grounds that the damage is already done. An unfinished slope can be covered with a temporary sheet if the weather turns, and that is a better outcome than a destroyed nest and an offence.
As a homeowner, you can help by telling us at the survey about birds you have seen at the house. A pair coming and going at the same gap each day is useful information, and it costs nothing to share.
You can also make the roof less attractive for next time. Once the nest is empty, a roofer can close small gaps at the eaves and fit bird guards where they are right for the covering. Whether to do that is a decision for the owner, and a survey will show where the gaps are.
Our services are listed from the homepage, and the survey comes before any quote.
