Contribute to organising game shooting activities

This standard is about contributing to the organisation of game shooting activities. It deals with the competence required by individuals who plan, organise and implement shooting programmes.

It has been developed so that it can be applied to any organised game shooting activities on any area of land used for game shooting. This standard is aimed at those who work in game conservation on either a full- or part-time basis, and can be applied to any wildlife management area.

To meet this standard you will be able to:

• contribute to the planning of shooting programmes
• contribute to the planning of shoots
• organise individual shoot days
• manage individual shoot days.

For you to fully understand the content of the standard, and the activities it describes, it is important that you are able to understand the terms used within the standard. See Glossary for some definitions that should help you with this.

1. ensure work is carried out safely, in line with relevant health and safety requirements
2. contribute to organising game shooting activities by obtaining the game shooting programme specification
3. develop and agree the implementation of the game shooting programme with shoot management
4. ensure that planned game shooting activities comply with relevant legal requirements
5. contribute to the development of contingencies to effectively deal with factors that may affect the game shooting programme
6. inform the relevant people of the intended game shooting activities in sufficient time, prior to the event
7. contribute to the organisation and allocation of resources to effectively support the planned game shooting programme
8. contribute to establishing arrangements to handle and dispose of dead game
9. contribute to organising game shoot day activities to make best use of the natural topography and habitat in presenting the game to participants
10. effectively communicate shoot safety requirements to all those involved with the game shoot day
11. ensure gun satisfaction through the maintenance of good communication, and identifying and responding to the game shoot participant’s needs
12. contribute to organising activities so that the planned outcome of the game shoot can be achieved in a manner that maintains the safety of all participants
13. deal with any factors that affect game shooting activity to minimise their effect on the game shooting programme
14. monitor game movement and adjust the shoot programme accordingly
15. observe wild game to determine if their condition is suitable for human consumption
16. ensure injured game is dispatched humanely
17. ensure that game carcasses are handled and stored to maintain their quality and value, according to relevant legal requirements
18. inspect game carcasses to confirm their condition as suitable for entering the human food chain and take appropriate action when carcasses form a risk to human health, in accordance with relevant legal requirements
19. ensure that shooting activities are concluded so that the shoot area is returned to a pre-shoot condition
20. maintain accurate records according to relevant legal requirements and those of the organisation you work for

1. the health and safety requirements associated with organising game shooting activities
2. the relevant legal requirements (national and local bylaws) pertaining to the planned game shooting activities
3. the importance of keeping all relevant people informed of the game shooting activity
4. the wildlife management area characteristics including details of how else the area is used by others
5. how area topography and habitat characteristics are used to optimise sporting potential
6. the game population availability in the area
7. the behaviour characteristics of different game species and how these are utilised to provide sporting opportunities to guns
8. the resource requirements associated with the planned game shooting activities
9. the sporting requirements of participants in game shooting activities
10. the value of good communication skills to shoot safety and organisation
11. the legal requirements controlling the storage, transportation and carriage of firearms and ammunition
12. the relevant legal restrictions controlling the ownership and use of firearms
13. the principles of safe gun handling
14. how to manage game shooting activities to optimise sporting potential
15. how to determine when the behaviour and condition of game indicate that they are not suitable for human consumption
16. the action to take when notifiable diseases are suspected in game
17. the relevant legal requirements controlling the preparation and storage/holding of game and how changes in the preparation and storage environment can affect the product
18. how to inspect game carcasses and the action to take if carcass abnormalities are identified
19. the relevant legal requirements controlling the disposal of dead game and the reasons for compliance with these
20. the legal basis for your lawful presence on the land in order to carry the game shooting activity
21. the reasons for keeping records and the importance of their accuracy

Organise at least two of the following activies:

• beating
• stopping
• picking-up
• dealing with dead game
• sewelling
• flagging
• ghillieing
• loading

Plan shooting activities to cover:

• planned number of days
• required quarry numbers
• intended shoot area

Organise the following resources:

• available game
• people
• transport
• equipment
• finance

Inform the following people of shooting activities:

• participants in shooting activity
• adjacent land owners
• shoot or estate manager
• other land users

Develop contingencies to deal with two of the following factors:

• different environmental conditions
• unexpected game behaviours
• human influences
• resource shortages

Game – In this standard the term game refers to “small game”. Under EU regulations the definition of “small game” is much wider than the traditional game species and may include all or some of the following UK quarry species:

• Gamebirds – pheasant, grey partridge, red-legged partridge, red grouse, black grouse, ptarmigan (Scotland only)
• Duck – mallard, teal, wigeon, pintail, shoveler, gadwall, tufted duck, pochard, goldeneye, scaup (NI only)
• Geese – pink-footed goose, greylag goose, white-fronted goose (England & Wales only) Canada goose
• Waders – golden plover, common snipe, jack snipe (NI only), curlew (NI only), woodcock
• Rail family – coot (England, Wales & Scotland only), moorhen (England, Wales & Scotland only)
• Pest bird species – woodpigeon, rook
• Mammals – rabbit, brown hare, mountain hare, grey squirrel

Shooting activities – any legal field sport involving the hunting of game with a firearm

Wildlife management area – any area of land used for the provision of game-shooting activities

Gun – participant in shooting activity