Swift bricks become mandatory for new buildings in Scotland

The Scottish Parliament has passed a law that requires new buildings in Scotland to be fitted with swift bricks for nesting birds.

The requirement for swift bricks to be installed in new buildings “where reasonably practicable and appropriate” was included in an amendment to the Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill, as proposed by Scottish Green Member of Scottish Parliament (MSP) Mark Ruskell.

Swift bricks are hollow bricks that can be inhabited by cavity-nesting birds such as swifts, an aerial bird once common in the UK that is now on the country’s Red List of conservation concern.

The declining populations of swifts, which typically nest in the nooks and crannies of homes, are believed to be linked to a lack of nesting locations.

“This is what practical, common-sense nature recovery looks like”

“The swift population has fallen by around two-thirds since the mid-1990s, largely because modern buildings no longer provide nesting sites which swifts need to breed,” said Ruskell.

According to the Scottish Greens member, the solution to this is “incredibly simple – it is literally a brick with a hole in it and costs around £30, and once it’s built in, it’s there for decades”.

“My proposals will require ministers to change regulations so that new buildings include nesting spaces for swifts as a standard feature, just like insulation or fire safety,” Ruskell added. “This is what practical, common-sense nature recovery looks like.”

“It doesn’t block housebuilding, it doesn’t add red tape, and it doesn’t push up costs in any meaningful way. It just makes sure that when we build new homes and workplaces, we leave space for wildlife too.”

Backed by MSPs across parties, the change to the Scottish bill to make swift bricks mandatory will enter a 12-month consultation period to establish building standards.

The news comes as the UK government’s reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework are open for consultation, which includes the requirement for new builds in England to be fitted with swift bricks.

Scotland brings in law as English planning reform criticised

Bird conservationist and swift brick campaigner Hannah Bourne-Taylor, who has been campaigning for the government to mandate swift bricks since 2022, told Dezeen that the English planning reform does not go far enough to help wildlife because “it is through a policy with no statutory weight – there is no legal requirement”.

In an Instagram post, Bourne-Taylor expressed “tears of joy” over Scotland’s mandatory swift bricks law.

“Four years of asking England, and Scotland sorts it in a month,” she said.

Other bird-related stories that have recently been featured on Dezeen include floating wooden shelters designed to protect ducks and bird feeders designed for a charity auction by leading architects, including Norman Foster, Grafton Architects and Jacques Herzog.

The main photo of a swift brick is by Action for Swifts.