Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) are protected areas in the UK designated under:
- the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (as amended) in England and Wales (including the adjacent territorial sea) and to a limited extent in Scotland (reserved matters) and Northern Ireland (excepted matters),
- the Conservation (Natural Habitats &c.) Regulations 1994 (as amended) in Scotland,
- the Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995 (as amended) in Northern Ireland, and
- the Conservation of Offshore Marine Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 in the UK offshore area.
Under these Regulations, the UK Government and devolved administrations are required to establish a network of important high-quality conservation sites that will make a significant contribution to conserving the habitats and species identified in Annexes I and II, respectively, of European Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora, known as the Habitats Directive. The listed habitat types and species are those considered to be most in need of conservation at a European level (excluding birds). Of the Annex I habitat types, 78 are believed to occur in the UK. Of the Annex II species, 43 are native to, and normally resident in, the UK.
SACs, together with Special Protection Areas (SPAs), form part of the UK's national site network.
JNCC is responsible for advising the UK Government and devolved administrations on aspects of the designation and management of SACs from a UK perspective. JNCC also has specific responsibilities for advising on the designation and management of SACs in the UK offshore area. Further information on UK offshore SACs and JNCC’s Marine Protected Areas (MPA) work can be found on our MPA webpages.
SAC site information
JNCC maintains site information for all SACs in the UK.
The list of UK SACs links to individual SAC site webpages that present summary statistics, descriptions of the constituent protected species and habitats, a location map, and the site’s Standard Data Form (see Approach to SAC selection). Individual UK country and offshore lists are also available for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as for UK offshore.
The lists of species and habitats protected by UK SACs link to individual species and habitat webpages that describes the ecological characteristics and UK/European distribution of the protected feature.
In addition, a spreadsheet of UK SACs and their qualifying habitats and species, other published data relevant to SACs, and a spatial layer of SAC site boundaries is available through the UK Protected Area Datasets for Download webpage. JNCC also manages an online library of UK and EU case law relating to SAC designation and management.
Site information for SACs designated in the UK Overseas Territory of Gibraltar is available on the Protected Areas in Gibraltar webpage.
UK SAC network summary
Special Areas of Conservation in the UK as of 24 April 2026
|
Country |
Number of sites |
Area ha1 |
|
England |
242 |
1,068,550 |
|
England / Scotland |
3 |
112,766 |
|
England / Wales |
7 |
95,182 |
|
England / Offshore |
3 |
3,797,160 |
|
England / Wales / Offshore |
1 |
584,211 |
|
Northern Ireland |
57 |
85,870 |
|
Northern Ireland / Offshore |
1 |
160,404 |
|
Scotland |
239 |
2,290,964 |
|
Scotland / Offshore |
2 |
182,276 |
|
Wales |
85 |
590,911 |
|
Wales / Offshore |
2 |
1,061,242 |
|
UK Offshore Waters |
16 |
4,713,914 |
|
UK TOTAL |
658 |
13,488,6682.3 |
|
Gibraltar |
2 |
5,687 |
1 Site area figures have been calculated using GIS and rounded to the nearest whole hectare. Please note that site area figures for each country relate to both the terrestrial and inshore domain. The calculation method has evolved throughout the time that these figures have been produced and changes to the methods mean that there may be slight discrepancies between the most up-to-date values and equivalent figures from earlier updates.
2 The UK total is calculated from GIS and does not reflect the sum of the totals in each country/offshore, due to overlapping sites in different areas.
3 UK figures exclude two SACs in the UK Overseas Territory of Gibraltar.
Site summary details
JNCC maintains datasets for all SACs in the UK.
JNCC provides summary data for all UK SACs and their qualifying habitats and species (spreadsheet format – includes SPAs) and a spatial layer of the SAC boundaries (shapefile format – excludes offshore area).
The national site network site summary spreadsheet and SAC shapefiles can be downloaded from the Resource Hub.
Please note, the country nature conservation bodies (CNCBs) periodically update SAC boundaries, for example when natural features shift position. These changes are subtle and may not result in an update to JNCC’s datasets. For the latest SAC boundaries, visit the relevant CNCB website.
SACs with "marine components" are SACs which protect a habitat or species associated with the marine environment. Data for these marine sites can be found on the Marine Protected Area Datasets for Download webpage.
Latest changes to the UK SAC network
JNCC coordinates an update to the UK SAC network on an annual basis, working with the Statutory Nature Conservation Bodies (SNCBs) based on any updates in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and offshore marine. This information is provided on these webpages in the spring each year.
Information on changes to the UK SAC network relating to newly classified SACs and amended existing SACs is available through the National Site Network Change log. The Change log captures all changes made to National Site Network sites from 2002 until the most recent update. A summary of the most recent update can be found in the Explanatory Note.
Please note that the SNCBs may update SAC site and boundary data in the intervening period between the annual updates on JNCC’s website. To access the latest UK National Site Network boundary data, please visit the relevant SNCB website.
Keeping up to date
If you would like to be notified on any changes to the UK National Site Network as part of the annual update, please sign up to our mailing list.
SAC selection
JNCC has produced an explanation of the UK’s approach to selecting Special Areas of Conservation for designation.
Each UK Special Area of Conservation and Special Protection Area has its own Standard Data Form containing site-specific information about the designation. Information from these Standard Data Forms is managed centrally by JNCC in a UK-wide database for SAC and SPA designations.
SAC condition & reporting
The UK’s Statutory Nature Conservation Bodies (SNCBs) are responsible for assessing the condition of habitats and species protected the designated SACs. This is carried out through Common Standards Monitoring.
Every six years, the results of this monitoring within SACs are used to inform a UK-wide assessment of the status and trends of species and habitats for which these sites are protected. This is undertaken by the five country nature conservation bodies (CNCBs) on behalf of UK Government and the Devolved Administrations. This feeds into a broader assessment of the status and trends of these species and habitats across their whole UK distribution (i.e. both inside and outside sites). There is also a general implementation report that summarises the main work and achievements in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and UK offshore on the implementation of the Habitats Directive, including some specific information on SACs and their contribution to the national/UK site network.
The reports are accessed through JNCC’s European Reporting webpage.
The primary objective of management is to achieve the Favourable Conservation Status (FCS) of protected habitats and species. The UK’s CNCBs have produced a common statement setting out the concept of FCS within a UK and UK country context.
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