WB1: Small Wildlife Box Grant

About this grant

The WB1 Small Wildlife Box is a capital grant item under Natural England's Countryside Stewardship Capital Grants programme that provides payment for installing artificial nesting, roosting, and hibernation sites for specific mammals, birds, and invertebrates. The item supports wildlife conservation by creating habitat structures for target species including dormice, tree sparrows, targeted bat species, and invertebrate pollinators. Applicants can install boxes for these specified target species or for other target species with support from a Natural England, Buglife, or Royal Society for the Protection of Birds adviser, provided summer and winter foraging habitat is available all year for the target species on or near the applicant's land. The scheme requires proper box placement in appropriate locations, maintenance through autumn cleaning (except for hibernating or roosting bats), and detailed record keeping including photographs and documentation of the completed work.

Eligibility

Applicants must be able to provide wildlife boxes on or near their land with appropriate foraging habitat available year-round for target species. Boxes can be installed for dormouse, tree sparrows, targeted bat species, or invertebrate pollinators, or for other target species with written support from a Natural England, Buglife, or RSPB adviser. This item is available under Countryside Stewardship Capital Grants 2026 or as part of Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier applications. Applicants must comply with all rules in the Capital Grants 2026 guidance or CSHT applicant's guide as applicable.

Key requirements

• ✓Must meet Natural England eligibility criteria for the scheme
• ✓Requirement to install small wildlife boxes as specified in scheme guidance
• ✓Compliance with scheme management and reporting requirements

Frequently asked questions

Who can apply for WB1: Small Wildlife Box?

Eligibility covers organisations in GB; individual, nonprofit, social-enterprise, community-group, local-authority. See the eligibility criteria above for the full conditions.

Relevant sectors

About this sector

Biodiversity funding backs habitat restoration, species protection, protected areas and nature-positive business. It comes from environment agencies, multilateral nature funds and conservation philanthropy, often through competitive calls with defined regions. Applicants are usually asked for baseline surveys, local partners and indicators that show ecological change.