Epping Forest District Badger Group

We meet every third Monday of the month at 8 pm, at the Hemnall Social Club, Hemnall Street, Epping (just across the road from Epping Sports Centre). During the summer months, we often go on outdoor trips to watch badgers; in the autumn and winter months we stay indoors and will usually have a guest speaker attend.  We normally charge everyone attending the indoor meetings £1 to cover the cost of the room.  For details of our future programme see the "News and Events" section. 

Survey & Monitor Setts

• Identify the locations of all badger setts in the Epping Forest District. This sounds impossible, but we already have over 80 setts plotted and new ones are being recorded each month.  Small teams of badger enthusiasts are combing the district’s countryside and towns to find more.
• Once located, the group carry out an initial survey of the extent of the sett and then continue to monitor the badger population in that area.  Some setts are easily visible from the road, but some are on private land. For protection purposes we do not give out sett locations.

Liaise with outside groups

• Corporation of London
• RSPCA
• Epping Forest District Council
• Police
• Essex Wildlife Trust
• Badger Trust (formerly the National Federation of Badger Groups)

Rescue injured badgers and RTA collection

• Monitor badger road traffic accidents (RTA’s) in the district and find a way of reducing the fatalities.  Over 45,000 badgers die on our roads in the UK each year. We would like to reduce this figure and help drivers at the same time!  Badgers are large stocky animals weighing approx 12 Kg and if you hit one you will do substantial damage to your car, even at low speeds! 

Public Awareness

• Local newspapers (Yellow Advertiser, Herald, Guardian & Gazette)
• Forester, Leaves, Essex Wildlife T magazines
• BBC Radio Essex
• TV
• Slide presentations
• Fêtes and Shows
• Posters (Libraries, vets, shops)
  

Fund Raising

• Fêtes and shows
• Street collecting
• Grants
• Survey work