Before commissioning detailed ecological work, it can help to review what available environmental datasets already indicate about a site: mapped habitats, nearby SSSIs, ancient woodland and species records.
BioGain checks available data from 7 UK environmental sources. No account is needed for the initial screen, but site surveys and professional input may still be required.
How It Works
Search by postcode, address, or just navigate the satellite map. Zoom in until you can see your site boundary clearly.
Click the polygon tool and click points around your site boundary. Double-click to finish. The area is calculated automatically.
BioGain reviews available environmental sources and overlays returned data on the satellite map.
View results in the panel, download a PDF, or share a link. The indicative baseline is a starting point, not a completed statutory metric.
What Data You Get
7 Environmental Data Layers
- Priority Habitats — Natural England's Priority Habitat Inventory
- Ancient Woodland — Woodland present since at least 1600 AD
- SSSIs — Sites of Special Scientific Interest
- Flood Risk — Environment Agency flood zones
- Species Records — NBN Atlas (protected and notable species)
- Soil & Geology — British Geological Survey superficial deposits
- LIDAR Elevation — EA 1m Digital Terrain Model (terrain profile)
Each data layer is overlaid on the satellite map, so you can see exactly where features are in relation to your boundary. The results panel shows feature counts, habitat types, species lists, and soil descriptions.
What the BNG Score Means
BioGain calculates your baseline biodiversity units using the Statutory Biodiversity Metric. This gives you:
- Area habitat units — based on habitat type, size, condition, and distinctiveness
- Estimated condition — using satellite data and habitat classification
- Enhancement considerations — topics to explore during professional impact and delivery planning
- Statutory metric scoring breakdown — distinctiveness bands, condition tiers, strategic significance
This isn't a replacement for a full ecological survey on complex sites, but it gives you a solid starting point for understanding your site's biodiversity value.
Who Is This For?
- Developers doing early feasibility or due diligence on a site
- Landowners curious about the ecological value of their land
- Planning consultants preparing BNG evidence for small sites
- Ecologists wanting a pre-populated baseline before a site visit
- Anyone buying land who wants to understand potential BNG costs
Try it now — completely free
No signup. No credit card. Just draw a boundary and see what's on your site.
Open BioGain →What's the Catch?
Core screening is free and lets you:
- Draw unlimited boundaries
- View all 7 data layers
- See feature counts and summaries
- Download the available screening outputs
Core BioGain screening is currently free. Outputs are indicative and do not replace ecological surveys, formal statutory metric work, planning advice or submission-ready documentation.
About the Data
BioGain queries available environmental datasets from sources including Natural England, the Environment Agency, British Geological Survey and NBN Atlas. Coverage, currency and availability vary by source.