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Hello everyone,

I’m new to the forum and am looking to pick your brains with regard to several shooting related subjects. First things first though. I am looking to apply for a shotgun licence. Having done some preliminary research I realise I have to meet certain criteria. I have no convictions, am of good character, can supply the necessary reference, would have an approved type gun cabinet installed prior to home visit.
My main issue is that I don’t have permission to shoot on anyone’s land. Does this bar me from applying? I read somewhere that permissions for shooting on land isn’t required in order for the application to be approved, is this correct? That, in effect, you are applying for a permit which will allow you to own a shotgun irrespective of the fact that you have somewhere to shoot it? Of course, I would seek to get permission from my local farmers, but only after (if) a license had been granted. Secondly, I would want to buy a .410 hushpower, would I have to make a declaration on the application stating that I want to purchase a moderated shotgun?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Welcome.
You do not need land to shoot over to own a shotgun, in fact you do not even need to be a member of a club however membership does go a long way. I would always advise my firearms department of anything moderated regardless of how far you can strip the Hushpower down.

Have you decided what sort of shooting you are going to do yet and have you any experience of shooting? These are questions the FEO would ask at time of home visit.

Hello Paul - Welcome to the forum.

I'm no authority on scatterguns but I think you can just go straight ahead and apply for a SGC - You don't need ground to shoot on as you could just turn up at a clay shooting ground and shoot. I also don't think you need any extra requirement for a moderated shotgun. Totally different for an FAC of course.

Also if you are thinking of going on to get an FAC you might think about getting them both together (co-terminus)

Even though you don't need to provide a 'good reason'* for owning a shotgun in the legislation the police will effectively always ask you for one by questionining you as to what you are going to use it for and where you are going to use it. If you're sat in your 'interview' and they ask where are you going to use it and you say, "on some land that I haven't secured permission on yet" then you'll be politely advised to re-apply when you do have permission to shoot on it. N.B. It doesn't necessarily have to a formal arrangement with a written permission letter but at the very least you'd need to be able to provide a land owners/shooting rights holders details for the police to be able to contact so they can verify you are allowed to go there.

*good reason is target shooting or pest control.

Even if you don't want to become a member its a good idea to get yourself along to a local clay shoot or two. It will let you see other peoples guns and what they are using, possibly lead to you finding somewhere to shoot pests (presumably what you want to do) through talking to people likely doing both clays and pest control, and give you some practice at shooting moving targets. And you never know, you might like it!

If you don't have any land to shoot over at the time of your application being able to provide the name/address and possibly club secretaries name of a clay club you've been to will help.

Thanks for the responses thus far.

I’m going to ask what you may consider foolish questions, but please bear with me.

In answer to one poster and I’m guessing it’s not relevant, I have experience of firearms, but they were military weapons. I would be looking to do some pest control.
It’s an afterthought, but a relative of mine owns some land, but it’s not large (they keep a couple of horses on it) I’m not sure of the actual size without checking. I’m confident they would give permission should I require it. I only want one shotgun, a moderated .410. This is because I might be able to secure permission from a local farmer, but the fields in question are close to some houses and I wouldn’t want to disturb anyone by shooting. If my relative gave permission, a moderated .410 would not scare the horses.
Just for my information, is there a minimum limit to the size of land you are given permission to shoot on? Do the police follow this up? Perhaps my relatives paddock/field is half an acre? She also has an adjoining plot. As far as I’m aware there are no buildings nearby but I would have to consider the safety aspects before shooting on it.

Remember you also need insurance to shoot over land, BASC membership provides this.

BamBam wrote:Remember you also need insurance to shoot over land, BASC membership provides this.

That's something I'd never even considered. Thanks for the heads up.

I'd appreciate it if someone could give me an answer on my question about 'minimum size of land' for permission to shoot on (if indeed there is such a thing). That would be most helpful. While I'm guessing it isn't a penny packet, it can't be acres. When I next see my cousin I will ask her.

half an acre isn't very big! about 100m by 100m.
I doubt you would get permission even for a shotgun.
afaik the police will check the land - if its new to them - for suitability for firearms proposed.
have you fired a hushpower 410? not as quiet as you would think.

It might be worth saying hello on the pigeon watch forums. Some of the members have syndicates which are a good opportunity to go rough shooting and learn a bit about pest control, plus if you all get on you might get permission to join and therefore have permission to shoot over some land. Most of all though you’ll get experience and that can go a long way with licensing.

There are rules regarding proximity to roads and footpaths etc and you should make yourself aware of all of these but should you bear all those in mind and have a shotgun and permission to shoot, you should just be able to get on with it as long as what you are doing is safe.

If in doubt ask the BASC and ask your licensing department. They are both there to give you advice and provide you a service.

Personally for half an acre near houses I’d be looking for a good air rifle and buying a 12 bore for shooting clays and shooting over more rural land. A 410 is ok for short range if you’re a good shot but it’s much harder to make a clean kill with one of those than it is with a 12 bore.

There is no plot size/gun type etc matrix or rule of thumb (that i'm aware of anyway). Personally i'd say 1/2 acre is too small for shooting birds over but if the terrain is right (i.e. provides natural backstops) you might get away with it for rats and rabbits. However, as Shotgun Certificates cannot have additional Conditions applied to them which would restrict you to only ground based pests, there would be no way for the police to control whether you're shooting avain or ground pests and therefore would likely err on the side of caution and say it was a no go.