Grey squirrels are widely killed in the UK under existing wildlife policy through lethal control.
This approach is justified by claims about the harm they are said to cause — claims that are often exaggerated, weakly evidenced, or left unchallenged. The methods used to enforce lethal control are also rarely examined in public.
We provide clear, evidence-based information so people can assess whether lethal control really is justified.
Grey Squirrel Protection UK is a non-profit organisation dedicated to exposing what is happening to grey squirrels in the UK.
Grey squirrels are routinely killed under wildlife policy through lethal control, yet most people are unaware of the scale of this killing, the methods used, or how the harm they are alleged to cause is defined and assessed.
We exist to bring these realities into the open — through public education, evidence-based advocacy, and campaigning for change where current law and policy cause unnecessary and ongoing suffering.
Many organisations tell the public that if a grey squirrel is trapped it must be killed and cannot be released.
This is misleading.
If a grey squirrel is accidentally trapped — for example in a bird feeder, netting, or on private property — the law does not prohibit freeing it and allowing it to leave where it was found.
What the law restricts is the deliberate capture and release of grey squirrels into the wild — not the act of freeing an animal that has become unintentionally trapped.
The RSPCA confirms this distinction in its public guidance:
👉 https://www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/wildlife/squirrels/injured
