Special Protection Areas

Background to SPAs

The UK has had an active programme of SPA identification and classification since the Birds Directive came into force in 1979. The programme has evolved over time, with the progressive development of processes and procedures related to the identification of sites and their classification. For more information about the key developments, visit the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) website.

The UK Government requested JNCC (with substantial input from SNH and the other country agencies) to review the UK SPA network with a view to recommending a definitive list of sites, identified against explicit selection guidelines. After a period of consideration and consultation with non-governmental organisations JNCC published the UK’s SPA selection guidelines in 1999. The final report presenting the full results of SPA Review was published in 2001 as ‘The UK SPA Network: Its Scope and Content’. The network of sites described in this report substantially fulfils the UK’s obligations under the Birds Directive. However, it is acknowledged that there may be remaining gaps in the representation of a small number of species, and a few further sites may be added in the future as more data become available.