Bats in the belfry or perhaps the roof?
It's no laughing matter if the adorable little creatures have moved into a site destined for redevelopment.
This is exactly what happened when Bellco Developments acquired Rebbur House in Keyworth as their next building project.
A legal obligation of builders is to check for European Protected Species on a site before any building begins.
These protected species include bats and breeding birds, and in the case of Rebbur House, there was evidence of the brown long-eared bats in the loft space that were found.
Claire Gibson of Belco explained: "The giveaway signs [according to the experts] were an accumulation of bat droppings and feeding remains at floor level on the loft insulation and joists.
"Bat droppings resemble mouse droppings but have a dry, crumbly texture and the unmistakable characteristic of the bits of flying insects that the bats have been feeding upon; mosquitos, midges, flies and moths."
That was back in 2015 and it's taken a lot of surveys, building measures and conservation considerations to get to the stage where Bellco can now say the apartments being created on the site will be completed by Spring 2020.
So, exactly what measures is a builder obliged to take when it comes to conservation?
Searching for the species
The developer says first of all surveys from ecological consultants, EMEC Ecology, were commissioned, and a daytime inspection carried out to determine the presence or the absence of any bats and breeding birds.
English Heritage Bat Conservation team identified the bat species - by the fact that one of the brown long-eared bats' favourite moths is the yellow underwing.
Moth wings aren’t particularly tasty or nutritious and the brown long-eared bat lets these fall to the floor beneath its feeding perch, amidst the droppings there was small piles of yellow underwing moth wings.
Bats and birds can utilise building features and while birds are more likely to be noticed because of their daytime activity, different species adopt different parts of the building.
In general, house sparrows and starlings use holes in roofs; house martins beneath the eaves and swallows’ nest in old barns, and bats, which are more secretive and so more difficult to find, look for different habitats depending upon the species.
The common pipistrelle bats are normally found in crevices beneath roof tiles and gaps in the walls, while brown long-eared bats and whiskered bats head for loft spaces.
Claire says: "After the initial findings, evening bat surveys were carried out using ‘bat detectors’ and night-vision camcorders, and at least 20 brown long-eared bats were found using the loft space and flying in and out of a gap at the gable-end beneath the barge boards.
"This bat roost proved to be a ‘maternity roost’ where baby bats are born during the summer, each mature female bat produces one baby bat per year.
"Bat roosts are protected by law and a maternity roost is considered significant in the sense that it would be highly detrimental to the species if the roost site became unavailable without putting into place suitable mitigation or compensation for the bats."
The bat loft
To ensure the bats would be protected Bellco agreed to put in place five bat boxes and build a 'Bat Loft’ as an alternative bat roosting site.
After long and detailed consideration a bat licence for the development of Rebbur House was granted in late 2015.
Finally, the roof of Rebbur House could be dismantled but only under the supervision of an ecologist. It couldn't be done in the summer when dependent baby bats would be present.
During 2016, a garage, designed to accommodate a bat roost following guidelines as laid out in the Bat Conservation Trust's requirements for roost creation with bat entry and exit points similar to the original one in the old house was built.
Three tree-mounted bat boxes were erected on trees in preparation to rehouse the bats.
In October 2016, after the bat breeding season, the roof of Rebbur House was dismantled by hand.
Two brown long-eared bats were found, which were transferred into the new bat loft by the ecologist.
With the Bats migrated, building work on site commenced.
A home for humans
Once the site was clear for development, Bellco set about creating a gated community for both humans and bats.
The development consists of Rebbur House and Rebbur Gardens. There are nine, two-bedroom apartments (four ground floor, three first floor and two penthouses) within Rebbur House.
While Rebbur Gardens includes two, three bedroom and one four bedroom single storey homes.
The interior design images here are previous developments but provide an indication of quality and style.
Property interiors are being planned to offer comfortable yet contemporary interiors and, for example, provide bespoke kitchens made by specialist manufacturers and including Siemens or similar appliances.
Depending upon the accommodation chosen, kitchens include an electric double oven, hob, integrated fridge/freezer, dishwasher, integrated washer/dryer (apartments only), designer taps and granite work surfaces throughout.
Home buying facts
Where: Rebbur House and Rebbur Gardens, Nicker Hill, Keyworth, Nottinghamshire
Phased release:
Phase 1: Rebbur House Gardens - three single storey homes are launched and nearing completion - Guide price: £525,000
Phase 2: Rubbur House apartments - nine apartments launch date Spring 2020
For sale with: Humberts, Nottingham, tel: 0115 950 5444
