
Shot sizes
Traditionally, different pellet sizes have been favoured for different types of shooting but how does it equate in non-lead shot?
Get information on the legal shooting season for mammals and birds in the UK.
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Comprehensive information and advice from our specialist firearms team.
Everything you need to know about shotgun, rifle and airgun ammunition.
Find our up-to-date information, advice and links to government resources.
Everything you need to know on firearms law and licensing.
All the latest news and advice on general licences and how they affect you.
The Performance of Police Firearms Licensing Departments in England and Wales 2025 is a major new report published by BASC in July 2025 which reviews the performance of police firearms licensing departments in England and Wales.
The report is the most detailed and wide-ranging of its kind. It combines data from more than 5,000 certificate holders, Freedom of Information responses from 41 of 42 police forces, and official figures from the Home Office and National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC).
The findings offer a snapshot of a firearms licensing system that remains deeply inconsistent in its delivery. The report identifies forces that are providing a timely and proportionate service, and others that are falling well short of expectations.

Traditionally, different pellet sizes have been favoured for different types of shooting but how does it equate in non-lead shot?

Firearm certificate conditions have proliferated over the years and have become a cause of friction between the police and certificate holders. Here you’ll find advice for licensing staff and certificate holders about the balanced application (if necessary) of additional firearm certificate conditions.

Explaining the law around what you can and can’t do when it comes to borrowing a rifle for use on private premises.