Villagers held hostage by seven month badger siege which cut them off from the outside world are free – as sett belonging to a family of the protected black and white beasts can now be moved

• Hulver village in Suffolk has had its main road closed for seven months 

The villagers of Hulver in Suffolk can finally relax as their main street has reopened seven months after it was forced to shut because of a family of badgers.

Contractors discovered the sett last Christmas when a mysterious crater opened in the tarmac.

After setting up traffic lights, bringing in diggers, drills and jackhammers, and cordoning off a stretch of the road, they discovered the cause – a badger sett had been dug underneath.

But that was only the start of the saga for Hulver, with a population of just over 400 people.

To the villages frustration, badgers are protected by law meaning their setts can only be moved between the beginning of July and the end of October, and only once Natural England has granted permission. 

Pictured: Hulver street in Suffolk which was restricted for seven months due to the discovery of a badger sett underneath

Pictured: The opening of the badger sett. After setting up traffic lights, bringing in diggers, drills and jackhammers, and cordoning off a stretch of the road after discovering the large hole, they found out the cause of it – a badger sett had been dug underneath

Pictured: Stock image of a badger. The animals are protected under British law meaning that  their setts can only be moved between the beginning of July and the end of October, and only once Natural England has granted permission

Yet Suffolk Highways only applied for a licence to move the Hulver badgers in June, so they were under added pressure to get approval before the October 31st deadline otherwise the road might have to remain closed until next summer.

But with the go-ahead finally given inside the time period, and the repair work completed, traffic finally began flowing again today.

One villager said ‘I’m sure there could have been a better remedy than there was, and it could have been speeded up a lot quicker.’

But others said they had welcomed the impact of the temporary traffic lights.

Stuart, who lives in Hulver, said ‘We actually quite liked the traffic lights here because it made the traffic predictable.

‘We have no path here and it slowed the traffic down, so when we walked out of our house we could go ‘that light’s green’…we can walk safely.’

Pictured: The mysterious hole that appeared last Christmas in Hulver Street

Pictured: Michael Leedham, 81, is furious at their local council for its inaction at removing a badger sett 

Another villager, Michael Leedham, 81, said he was angry with the council for the months-long chaos.

‘I used to be a road engineer and I cannot understand the council’s delay in accessing a licence to remove the sett.

‘The way this has been handled has been bodged from day one. From December to June the council sat on this information and didn’t do anything.

‘Why did it take the council so long to inform the wildlife group to remove the badgers? They should have been on that straight away.

Pictured: The location of the badger sett, which Suffolk Highways did not apply for a licence to move until June despite knowing about it from December

‘It has taken months for them to identify badgers have been burrowing underneath the road and the road could be at risk of collapsing.

‘I have the best interests of the animals and the safety of drivers in mind..’

Suffolk Highways said ‘We have been working with the relevant authorities to ensure that correct procedures are followed, including applying for a licence from Natural England.’ 

In July last year a town council in Dorset faced a £30,000 bill thanks to a family of badgers.

They tunnelled under the entrance to Swanage Town FC’s ground, causing the road to collapse.

To ensure the animals weren’t harmed during work to rebuild the road, the town council, who own the land at Days Park, employed an ecologist and applied for a Natural England Wildlife Licence.

They estimated the total bill would be in the region of £30,000.

Swanage Town and Herston Football Club is accessed by a narrow road from the North Beach car park.

It crosses a large ditch that has become naturalised with bushes and trees and that is where the badgers started digging their setts and then continued under the access road.

Since the problem was discovered in January 2022, metal plates had to be put across the road as a temporary solution. There is no alternative access to the football club.

Town councillor John Bishop, serving on the sport, leisure and wellbeing committee said last August ‘There’s nothing we can do – we own the land and if we are not going to leave the football club landlocked, then we have to do it properly. We have no choice.’

A report to councillors said work can only take place outside the badgers’ breeding season. A licensed badger ecologist would have to oversee it.

Measures to ensure the badgers were unharmed included removing the tarmac with a cutting disc and carefully lifting out the sections, placing sandbags into the tunnels to prevent any badger coming into contact with the digger bucket and allowing any badgers found beneath the road to safely exit into their main sett.

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