UK bird flu 15 Nov 2025: AIPZ rules and latest cases

Here is the bird flu update you can use in real life today. On 15 November 2025, Defra and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) confirmed H5N1 in a small group of ornamental captive birds near Dawlish, Devon. A 3km Captive Bird (Monitoring) Controlled Zone now applies, and the birds on site will be humanely culled to stop the virus spreading.

That follows a busy week. On 14 November a backyard flock near Pontyberem in Carmarthenshire tested positive. On 13 November APHA confirmed two more cases: a large commercial site near Poringland in South Norfolk, which triggered a 3km protection zone and 10km surveillance zone, and a small backyard flock near Gosforth, Cumbria, which is under a 3km Captive Bird (Monitoring) Controlled Zone. On 12 November there were positives at a large unit near Woodbridge in Suffolk and at a commercial premises near Lanark in South Lanarkshire, both with 3km and 10km control zones. Earlier in the month, cases were confirmed near Welshpool in Powys on 9 November, and near Hallow in Worcestershire on 8 November.

Quick explainer you can share with your class or team: H5N1 is a highly pathogenic avian influenza strain that spreads quickly among birds and can be devastating for flocks. A protection zone usually covers three kilometres from an infected premises with tight movement controls; a surveillance zone extends to ten kilometres with monitoring and testing; a Captive Bird (Monitoring) Controlled Zone is a three‑kilometre area used for smaller non‑commercial settings, focused on checking captive birds and limiting spread.

Great Britain is in an Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) and, in England, mandatory housing measures have applied since 6 November 2025. What this means: if you keep more than 50 birds of any kind in England, you must house them. If you keep fewer than 50 birds for your own use only, you do not have to house them. If you keep fewer than 50 but you sell or give away eggs, poultry products or live birds, you count as ‘poultry’ for these rules and must house them.

You should check where you stand. Use the official bird flu disease zone map to see if your address sits in a protection or surveillance zone, and then follow the rules for that zone. Before moving poultry, eggs, by‑products, bedding or even certain mammals, check whether a licence is required. In practice this means planning ahead, documenting movements and keeping contact details for APHA to hand.

For context, this is the 2025 to 2026 outbreak season, which the UK records from October to September. The first H5N1 cases this season were confirmed in Northern Ireland on 9 October, in England on 11 October, in Wales on 25 October and in Scotland on 12 November. So far there have been forty‑two confirmed H5N1 cases across the UK: thirty‑two in England, six in Wales, three in Northern Ireland and one in Scotland. Under World Organisation for Animal Health rules, the UK is not currently considered free from HPAI.

Risk is not the same everywhere. Defra and APHA assess the risk of H5 in wild birds as very high. For poultry, the risk is very high where biosecurity is weak, and medium where strict biosecurity is applied consistently. The UK Health Security Agency says the risk to the general public remains very low, and the Food Standards Agency says food safety risk is very low; properly cooked poultry and eggs are safe to eat.

If you keep birds at home, at school or on a farm, think of today as a checklist moment. House birds if you fall under the AIPZ housing rules for England. Keep feed and water under cover, clean footwear and equipment before and after contact, keep wild birds out of sheds and runs, block standing water, restrict visitors, and separate species where you can. Watch for sudden deaths, swollen heads, blue combs, loss of appetite or falling egg production, and contact APHA immediately if you suspect disease.

Bird events need extra care. In England, you can apply for a specific licence to hold a gathering of poultry if you are not in a disease control zone, and you can use the general licence for gatherings of other captive birds. If you are in the part of the AIPZ where birds must be housed, you cannot hold a gathering for most poultry types.

The rules for wild birds are designed to protect both wildlife and flocks. Do not touch sick or dead wild birds; report them through the official GOV.UK service. You can feed garden birds, but clean feeders and water baths regularly. If you are in an AIPZ, do not feed wild gamebirds within 500 metres of a premises that keeps more than 500 birds. If you are near places that keep poultry or captive birds, avoid feeding wildlife there.

There is a small but real issue with mammals. Avian influenza viruses can infect wild and kept mammals. Suspected or detected influenza of avian origin in mammals is notifiable. If you examine or test a wild or kept mammal and suspect infection, or detect influenza A virus or antibodies, you must report it immediately. The number in England is 03000 200 301; in Wales it is 03003 038 268; in Scotland you should contact your local Field Services Office. Failing to report is against the law.

Vaccines are tightly controlled. You cannot vaccinate poultry or most captive birds against bird flu in England. Zoos may vaccinate eligible birds if they obtain authorisation from the Animal and Plant Health Agency. Defra and the Veterinary Medicines Directorate are tracking vaccine development and running a vaccination taskforce, but policy has not changed for backyard or commercial flocks.

Behind the scenes, government teams are working to limit spread. Defra follows its contingency plan for exotic notifiable diseases and the notifiable avian disease control strategy, alongside specific legal orders on cleansing, disinfection, housing and vaccination. Devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland publish parallel guidance you should check if you keep birds there.

If you teach biology, geography or food tech, this story connects to real‑world systems. Migration, farming, biosecurity, supply chains and public health all intersect here. Classroom prompt: ask students to map how a three‑kilometre protection zone changes daily routines on a working farm, from deliveries to waste handling, and what evidence would show biosecurity is working.

For families and smallholders, the practical next steps are simple. Check the zone map, read the zone rules that apply to your postcode, review whether a movement licence is needed, and sign up for APHA and Defra updates. If you are new to keeping birds, the government’s ‘stop the spread’ webinars are a good starting point.

We will keep tracking updates, but rules can change quickly. Always check GOV.UK before you move birds or plan events, and include the date in your records. This summary reflects the official situation up to Saturday 15 November 2025, drawn from Defra, APHA, UKHSA and the Food Standards Agency.