SAVE OUR REDS: A COORDINATED RECOVERY FRAMEWORK FOR GREAT BRITAIN

Petition updateSave Our Reds: A National Recovery Plan for Britain's Red SquirrelsSAVE OUR REDS: A COORDINATED RECOVERY FRAMEWORK FOR GREAT BRITAIN

Marie Carter-RobbDurham, ENG, United Kingdom

May 25, 2026

When Save Our Reds began, it was driven by growing alarm over the continued destruction of red squirrel habitat across Britain, the weakening of wildlife protections, and the long-term failure to properly safeguard one of our most iconic native species.

Again and again, we were seeing the same pattern emerge:

fragmented protections,
poor enforcement,
habitat loss,
and local volunteer groups left trying to defend isolated squirrel strongholds with limited support and little national coordination.

Over time, the campaign has evolved, and so has our understanding of the scale of the challenge.

Red squirrels do not recognise political boundaries.

There are no walls between England, Scotland and Wales. No border controls in our woodlands. No barriers stopping squirrelpox, habitat fragmentation, woodland loss or grey squirrel expansion across mainland Britain.

The ecological reality is that red squirrel populations across Great Britain are interconnected.

And that means fragmented responses are no longer enough.

As the campaign has grown, it has become increasingly clear that the ecological realities facing red squirrels extend far beyond administrative boundaries.

In April 2026, Natural England's own Red Squirrel Recovery Strategy warned that, under current conditions, red squirrels could disappear from mainland England within around 25 years.

That warning matters.

Because while policy remains fragmented, the ecological pressures facing red squirrels do not stop at political borders. Woodland loss, disease pressure, habitat fragmentation and grey squirrel expansion continue across Great Britain as a connected ecological landscape.

Our own interactive mapping app already visualises this trajectory across Britain over time:

https://saveourreds.netlify.app/

The picture is sobering.

Without coordinated action and joined-up thinking, the long-term direction becomes increasingly difficult to ignore.

Over recent months, we have seen extraordinary work from local groups, charities, volunteers and conservationists across Britain. We hear constantly about new squirrel boxes, trail cameras, local ranger schemes and small-scale habitat projects. These efforts matter enormously, and many red squirrel populations would already have disappeared without them.

But they cannot continue indefinitely as isolated sticking plasters around a growing national problem.

Too much fragmentation.
Too much drift.
Too many isolated projects attempting to compensate for the absence of a coordinated long-term recovery strategy.

What is missing is coordination, long-term planning and political urgency.

That is why Save Our Reds is evolving into something broader:

a call for a coordinated recovery framework for red squirrels and their habitats across Great Britain.

This is not about replacing local conservation efforts. It is about supporting them with something stronger above them:

joined-up policy,
clear accountability,
proper enforcement of existing protections,
cross-border cooperation,
and long-term habitat resilience.

Environmental legislation across England, Scotland and Wales is complex and, in many areas, devolved. But complexity cannot become an excuse for drift or inaction.

With commitment, cooperation and public pressure, a coordinated recovery approach can work.

Red squirrels have survived in Britain for around 10,000 years.

If we continue with fragmented policies, inconsistent enforcement and reactive short-term thinking, we risk becoming the generation that loses them.

That cannot happen.

The campaign's focus remains rooted in habitat protection, enforcement of existing wildlife law and practical conservation action on the ground. But we are now also calling for a clearer and more coordinated recovery framework across Great Britain that recognises the connected nature of this ecological crisis.

Our updated five-point framework calls for:

1. Legally protect red squirrel woodlands immediately

Red squirrels must be added to the Habitats and Species Conservation Regulations 2017, as beavers were added in 2022, granting stronger legal safeguards for one of Britain's most threatened native mammals.

Alongside this, all known red squirrel habitats must be designated as protected zones. No large-scale felling should proceed without mandatory wildlife impact assessment, independent oversight, and enforceable penalties. If a woodland supports red squirrels, it must not be cleared without legally enforceable protection in place.

2. Enforce existing wildlife law, with named accountability

Red squirrels are already protected in law. That protection is too often ignored in practice. Government must properly enforce existing legislation across all red squirrel areas, with clear responsibility placed on Forestry England, land managers and relevant authorities, alongside meaningful consequences where protections are breached.

3. Deliver and audit biodiversity set-aside properly

Biodiversity protections already exist within forestry guidance and public woodland schemes. These must now be implemented in reality, not simply referenced on paper. All publicly funded woodland schemes should demonstrate genuine biodiversity protection, including demonstrable habitat retention for red squirrels, supported by transparent monitoring and public reporting.

4. Fund and fast-track vaccine and fertility control, with a public timetable

Immediately restart and fully fund the squirrelpox vaccine programme in partnership with the Moredun Research Institute. Publish a clear national timetable for grey squirrel fertility control, moving beyond small-scale trials toward practical deployment. If public funding has already been allocated, the public deserves transparency: where is it going, and what is being delivered?

5. Put rangers on the ground now, not next year

Significant funding has been announced for red squirrel conservation, yet local groups continue to ask the same question: where are the rangers? Dedicated, trained wildlife rangers must be deployed immediately across red squirrel strongholds in Great Britain to monitor populations, support volunteers, and respond rapidly to threats on the ground.

WHAT SUPPORTERS CAN DO NOW

Awareness matters, but political pressure matters too.

If you support a coordinated recovery framework for Britain's red squirrels, please contact your MP and ask them to support stronger protections, joined-up conservation policy and urgent action for red squirrel recovery across Great Britain.

We have created: