Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary's Humane Animal Dispatch Scheme launched to police forces across the UK

On Thursday 21 November this year, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary representatives met with 17 other UK police forces as part of a national rollout of our Humane Animal Dispatch (HAD) volunteer scheme.

HADs are called out by the force control room 24/7, 365 days a year, to reports of injured deer which have been involved in collisions on Hampshire's roads. 

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary recognise their responsibilities, accountabilities and the importance of animal welfare under the Animal Welfare Act 2006. Deploying a HAD volunteer means we are not allowing an animal to suffer unnecessarily. Dispatch of the animal is completed as effectively and humanely as possible.  

These volunteers are all experts in the field of deer management, and enable us to have the right resource in the right situation.

This year, up to 31 October, HADs had been deployed on 130 occasions to animal dispatch incidents across the county, compared to 21 deployments for firearms officers. This has enabled the Constabulary to make savings of up to £47,095, rising to £59,041 by the end of 2024.

The projections for 2025, factoring in the rise in deer population and anticipated HAD deployments, are that the Constabulary estimates it could save in excess of £100,000.

Inspector Stuart Ross, who has been leading the scheme for the Constabulary, said: “The HAD volunteers are an invaluable resource. The support they provide to policing at the roadside is phenomenal – not only are they experts in their field, ensuring that animals do not suffer unnecessarily in the aftermath of a collision, but as an asset their deployment ensures other police resources can direct their focus elsewhere.

“The Constabulary pioneered the police-led scheme around 15 years ago. At that time it operated as a local agreement with gamekeepers, farmers, deerstalkers and deer managers from rural communities before it was re-developed in 2022 into its current format.

“We recently launched our scheme nationally to an audience of police colleagues around the country, and we are pleased that other forces such as Derbyshire have already recognised the scheme as best practice and are exploring adopting it in their area.

“Our scheme has also had the backing from leading deer industry and animal welfare organisations, and other stakeholders, such as The British Deer Society, the RSPCA, the British Animal Rescue and Trauma Care Association (BARTA), and the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC).

“In addition, to provide specific HAD training for volunteers, Deer Management Qualification (DMQ) have recently introduced a HAD award which has now become a pre-requisite qualification to joining our HAD scheme. For those wanting to become a HAD volunteer, obtaining this qualification is essential. You can find more information about the DMQ HAD award by visiting BASC, BDS and National Gamekeeper Organisation websites. DMQ courses will become available across the UK through their training providers as police forces begin to adopt the Hampshire volunteer HAD scheme in support of a national collaboration.”

Inspector Stuart Ross

David McAuley, CEO of The British Deer Society, said: “After over 20 years of dedicated work by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary (HIOWC), together with essential support from Dorothy Ireland, Tony Lowry, and numerous volunteers from The British Deer Society (BDS) plus expert deer managers in Hampshire and surrounding counties, we are delighted to see the HIOWC Humane Animal Dispatch volunteer scheme poised for a national rollout.

“As the scheme expands nationwide, we are proud to pledge support for its success. We are actively raising funds to assist police-approved HAD volunteers with essential safety equipment, including coats, lights, and additional safety gear. This not only ensures their safety but also provides additional cost savings for police forces, which can reinvest these funds into local policing.

“In the long term, we aim to raise enough funds to support vetted applicants with the specific training they need to become official police HAD volunteers. 

“By continuing to collaborate with key partners and dedicated volunteers, we can help ensure that this critical work to alleviate deer suffering on UK roads will expand and thrive across the country.”

BASC head of deer and woodland management, Martin Edwards said: “BASC is delighted to be involved in this initiative. It is one of many ways that the shooting sector can provide a valuable service to society with this vital animal welfare issue. With over 42,000 active deer stalker members we are well placed to help find suitable volunteers to enrol with any police force that wants to implement a similar scheme to Hampshire’s.”