Natural England will advise and help the owners of SSSIs to make sure that these sites are managed in the best possible way. Effective management is essential to conserve the special wildlife and geological features of SSSIs. Examples of the types of management needed to maintain SSSIs include:

• grazing animals at particular times of year
• coppicing
• controlling water levels
• clearing scrub

Many SSSI owners and occupiers already carry out suitable management, which has contributed to the special interest of the land. It may be possible to give financial help to carry out the necessary management.

If SSSIs are suffering as a result of poor management or neglect, and Natural England cannot reach a voluntary agreement with the site owner, we may pursue more formal legal methods, such as imposing management schemes and management notices.

In the most extreme cases, powers of compulsory purchase may be used as a last resort when all other options to maintain the special interest of the SSSI are impractical.

It is an offence for anyone to intentionally or recklessly destroy or damage the special features of any land that they know is a SSSI, or to intentionally or recklessly disturb any animal which is notified as being of special interest.