Amends to RSPCA Welfare Standards for Laying Hens

Earlier this year, we announced we would be pausing the implementation date of the new RSPCA laying hen welfare standards to allow us more time to provide tailored support for members.

The strength of feeling and feedback on the new standards has been unprecedented. Our members are fundamental in helping us to improve hen welfare and we have listened and taken action.

We have made a number of amendments and clarifications to the standards, here is a summary of the updates.

We will soon be launching a brand new online laying hen members hub, which will provide members with additional support and guidance on how to meet the new standards. The site will host case studies for natural daylight (once they are ready), a digital calculator for members to calculate their current natural daylight provision through popholes, as well as a number of other useful resources.

New, potential or existing RSPCA Assured members who are in need of support or advice about meeting the new laying hen standards can contact RSPCA Assured’s farming engagement team by emailing Membership Services.

We have highlighted the biggest changes to the standards for you below:

General implementation date:

The implementation date for the standards has been extended from 1 February 2025 to 1 May 2025. This means you can continue to use the current 2017 version until 1 May 2025, giving you time to familiarise yourself with the latest updates.
The new edition of the standards - including these 2024 amendments - will be emailed to you on 3 February 2025 in a notification letter. We will also post a printed copy to you for your records.
The new standards will come into effect from 1 May 2025 unless otherwise stated.

Natural daylight:

Standard E6.1.6: The implementation date for natural daylight for all systems has been extended by one year - from 2031 to 2032. This will give members seven years from the date of implementation to meet the new standards.
We understand many of you have questions and concerns about the implementation and management of the standards on natural daylight. For this reason, we will commission an independent researcher to help us develop in-depth case studies from farms which are already achieving 3% natural daylight - and those that are working towards it.
We will be sharing these case studies on our new laying hen hub webpage (coming soon), which will serve as a key information resource for members. This will also include an online calculator for members to calculate their current natural daylight provision through popholes.
We will continue to engage with the industry through our working groups to ensure we provide the support that our members need.

The laying hen industry has also started the process for commissioning research in this area, we have received the initial proposal and are reviewing it. Whilst our commitment to the natural daylight standard will remain the same along with the implementation date of 2032, if the research is scientifically robust and delivers meaningful results we can all have confidence in, we will commit to taking due account of the research and using it to further influence the natural daylight standard if needed.

Fences on the range:

Standard R1.12: The standards no longer require fences on the range to have a gap of 45cm underneath them. In line with the Egg Marketing Inspection (EMI) free-range assessment guidance, the standards will now require that any fencing or restrictions on the range must not inhibit the hens’ ability to access the range area. These changes ensure the standard is achievable for a variety of different farm setups.

Pophole base height:

Standard R 3.6 a): The standards previously stated for existing buildings that ‘where the base of a pophole is more than 40cm from the house floor, ramps or platforms must be provided’. We have now increased this by 5cm (to 45cm) in line with the industry standard pophole base height. The RSPCA will continue to proactively communicate with manufacturers when developing future standards involving building design.
Standard R3.6 b): The standards previously stated for newly approved buildings that ‘the base of the pophole must not be more than 20cm’. We have now increased this by 5cm (to 25cm) pophole base height.
We have also added an information box to standard R3.6 b): This information box states this standard does not currently apply to newly approved buildings where at least one of the following conditions applied prior to 1st May 2025 and can be clearly evidenced:
- An existing written contract with an egg packer is already in place
- Planning permission has already been submitted to erect the building(s)
- Significant capital has been invested into the affected building(s) or its infrastructure

Natural cover:

Standard R 5.1: The implementation date for the provision of 20% natural cover has been extended for an additional year from 1 May 2026 to 1 May 2027, to allow members two full planting seasons to grow the required trees and shrubs.

However, we are aware that in some regions it’s difficult to grow trees and shrubs. Members in this situation are encouraged to contact us so we can provide expert advice on alternatives that will work for their specific environment.
We will also provide members with examples of natural cover and help guide them on how to implement the standard. We’ll develop these with the help of the producer working group.

Distance from popholes to range perimeter:

Standard R1.11: ‘Newly approved buildings must have at least one-third of the popholes with a minimum distance of 20m directly opposite to the perimeter of the range’. We have added an information box to this standard. This information box states this standard does not currently apply to newly approved buildings where at least one of the following conditions applied prior to 1st May 2025 and can be clearly evidenced:
- An existing written contract with an egg packer is already in place
- Planning permission has already been submitted to erect the building(s)
- Significant capital has been invested into the affected building(s) or its infrastructure

We’ve had a number of queries about information boxes, so we wanted to clarify this for you. Information boxes are used in the standards to provide additional information about a standard and to signpost areas that we may be looking at in the future.

We include these in the standards so that we can engage with the industry on these matters. If you have any comments or points to discuss on information boxes please get in touch so we can collect your comments.

Veranda Requirements

Free-Range Members	Barn members
No free-range members are required to install verandas. The requirement for new free-range members or existing members carrying out a major refurbishment to install a veranda, originally announced in November, has been removed. The RSPCA and RSPCA Assured will jointly engage with the industry to conduct an in-depth review of installing verandas on free-range systems.	Verandas must be installed on all barn buildings by no later than 1 January 2030. The requirement for newly approved buildings and refurbished buildings to install verandas from 1 May 2024 has been removed, this provides additional time for both existing and new barn members to install verandas.

Natural Daylight Requirement

Free-Range Members

Barn members

Additional natural daylight within the main laying house, corresponding to at least 3% of the total floor area, must be provided in all free-range systems by no later than 1 January 2032.
Popholes can be counted towards the natural daylight allowance. Many free-range producers will already be providing approximately half of the natural daylight requirement through existing popholes.
Newly approved buildings and refurbished buildings are no longer required to install windows from August 2024.

Natural daylight within the main laying house, corresponding to at least 3% of the total floor area, must be provided in all barn systems by no later than 1 January 2032.
Newly approved buildings and refurbished buildings are no longer required to install windows from August 2024.

Useful Resources

Members may find the below RSPCA commissioned report from ADAS useful in understanding the benefits of verandas and natural daylight for laying hens. However, please be aware when reading this report that the costing statement is from 2016 and will be outdated now. The report also provides lots of information about veranda design, but again as this is an old report, you must ensure when planning a new veranda that it meets the RSPCA welfare standards for verandas.

Understanding the benefits of verandas for barn systems Understanding the benefits of natural daylight for barn and free-range systems: ADAS Final Report on Verandas