England bird flu update: zones, AIPZ rules Feb 2026
If you keep a few hens at home, run a school smallholding, or you’re studying animal health, here’s the quick picture. England remains in an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone, with mandatory biosecurity and housing rules in place. Defra’s latest update on 27 February 2026 confirms several surveillance zones have now been lifted after cleaning and testing finished, which is encouraging for keepers and students tracking the outbreak season.
What changed over the past fortnight matters if you live near recent cases. Defra has revoked 10km surveillance zones around multiple premises in North Yorkshire, Norfolk and Nottinghamshire, and ended 3km protection zones where surveillance showed the virus was no longer active. In Suffolk, a protection zone ended and the area moved into a wider surveillance zone before being reviewed again. This is how the control system is meant to work: intense restrictions first, then careful step‑downs when the science supports it.
Let’s get clear on the terms you’ll see on the official map. A protection zone is typically a 3km circle around a confirmed case with strict movement controls and checks. A surveillance zone usually stretches to 10km, focusing on testing, records and controlled movements. If you keep birds, you must look up your postcode on the government map, follow the specific rules for your area, and check whether you need a movement licence before taking birds, eggs, litter or equipment off your premises. One missed step can put neighbouring flocks at risk.
Housing measures are still in force in England and Wales. If you keep 50 or more birds, you must house them. If you keep fewer than 50 only for your own use, you do not have to house them. If you keep fewer than 50 but sell or give away eggs, poultry products or live birds, you must house them because they count as poultry in law. For classrooms and backyard set‑ups, that means roofs or netting to keep wild birds out, secure feed and water indoors, and doors you can shut.
Where are we in the season? Since 1 October 2025, the UK has confirmed 94 cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 across the four nations, plus one low‑pathogenic case in England. England accounts for 74 of those HPAI cases, with 9 in Scotland, 7 in Wales and 4 in Northern Ireland. For context, the UK logged 82 HPAI cases in 2024–25, just 6 in 2023–24, 207 in 2022–23 and 158 in 2021–22. Patterns rise and fall, so local vigilance matters even when national numbers improve.
The UK is not currently classed as free from highly pathogenic avian influenza under World Organisation for Animal Health rules. That status affects trade and surveillance duties, which is why you’ll keep seeing step‑by‑step changes to zones rather than an instant return to normal. What this means: even if your local restrictions have eased, you still need to keep up strong hygiene and record‑keeping.
Risk levels are set nationally and updated as evidence changes. Officials currently assess the risk of H5 in wild birds as very high. For kept birds, the risk is high where biosecurity is patchy, and medium where strict measures are applied consistently. That split is your cue: day‑to‑day habits such as dedicated boots, clean waterers, and covered feed make a measurable difference to risk.
People often ask about personal risk and food safety. UK Health Security Agency advice remains that the risk to the general public is very low. The Food Standards Agency says properly cooked poultry and eggs are safe to eat. The main concern is bird‑to‑bird spread, not household transmission. For students: this is a clear example of how animal health controls and food safety guidance can point in different directions without contradicting each other.
If you’re a backyard keeper or a school farm lead, make biosecurity a routine you can teach and repeat. Keep housing intact and clean, separate your bird area from visitors, wash hands after handling equipment, and disinfect footwear on the way in and out. Store feed where wild birds can’t reach it, change dirty bedding quickly, and keep simple records of any movements or visitors. What this means: small, boring habits stop outbreaks from turning into long closures.
Feeding wild birds is allowed, but do it wisely. Clean garden feeders and water baths regularly, wash your hands afterwards, and avoid placing feed near premises that keep poultry or other captive birds. Within an AIPZ, you cannot feed wild gamebirds within 500 metres of a premises with more than 500 poultry or captive birds. The British Trust for Ornithology advises keeping feeders clean to cut disease spread between species, and that advice applies year‑round, not just during outbreaks.
Bird gatherings come with extra care. If you’re not in a protection or surveillance zone, some events-such as gatherings of parrots, birds of prey and racing pigeons-can go ahead under a general licence, while others, including chickens, ducks, geese and many songbirds, need a specific licence. In class terms, it’s a live example of regulation by species and risk. Always check the latest licence conditions before planning shows or training releases.
Vaccines are not a shortcut for routine keepers. You cannot vaccinate poultry or most captive birds against bird flu in England. Only licensed zoos can apply for authorisation to vaccinate eligible birds, and that decision sits with the Animal and Plant Health Agency and the Veterinary Medicines Directorate. Research continues, but for now housing and hygiene remain the tools that work at flock level.
Avian influenza viruses can infect some mammals. Influenza of avian origin in mammals is notifiable for both wild and kept animals, which creates a legal duty to report. If you’re in England, call 03000 200 301; in Wales, 03003 038 268; in Scotland, contact your local APHA Field Services Office. For learners, ‘notifiable’ means the law requires quick reporting so authorities can act fast-a key concept in public and animal health.
If you find dead or visibly sick wild birds, do not touch them. Report them using the official service and wash your hands thoroughly if you come into contact with droppings or feathers. For personal health advice, use NHS guidance. What this means: the safest help you can give is accurate reporting, not rescue attempts.
Studying this topic? Try reading outbreak maps like a scientist. Note dates, zone sizes, and when protection zones step down into surveillance zones or are revoked altogether. Track how case numbers across seasons link to weather, migration and farming patterns. Above all, remember that every zone change reflects lab work, field checks and rules designed to protect both wildlife and your community’s birds.