BNG Software: Biodiversity Net Gain for Planning

What's included

Everything you need to evidence
Biodiversity Net Gain

From baseline survey data to the certificate a planning authority or client asks for.

Statutory Biodiversity Metric calculator

Model area habitats, hedgerows and watercourses separately, using the statutory metric's size, condition, distinctiveness and strategic significance factors.

Baseline vs post-development modelling

Track your pre-development baseline units and model post-development habitats to confirm you reach at least 110% of baseline.

On-site shortfall, quantified early

See how much of your 10% gain your on-site habitat actually delivers, and how big the remaining shortfall is. BNG requires that shortfall to be met off-site or with statutory credits — those are not modelled here, so sizing them is a conversation for your ecologist.

Biodiversity Gain Plan evidence

The baseline, proposed habitats and net gain figures behind a Biodiversity Gain Plan, kept live rather than worked out once and filed.

Biodiversity Net Gain certificate

A polished, branded certificate you can attach to a tender or hand to a client, alongside your other compliance documents.

Alongside carbon

BNG data sits next to your Scope 1/2/3 carbon tracking, so a coherent sustainability story comes from one set of project data, not two disconnected spreadsheets.

Why switch

Replace the BNG spreadsheet

The habitat calculations and evidence you're already trying to track, unified into one auditable system.

Spreadsheets

VerdCore

Manual unit calculations

Statutory Metric calculator built in

Separate from carbon data

Alongside Scope 1/2/3 tracking

Static plan, filed once

Live record across the 30-year term

No client-ready evidence

Certificate ready to attach

How to start

Three steps to an
evidenced 10% net gain

1

Enter your baseline

Input your ecologist's survey data — area habitats, hedgerows and watercourses — as baseline units.

2

Model the gain

Add proposed post-development habitats and see your net gain percentage against the mandatory 10% in real time.

3

Evidence and export

Generate the Biodiversity Gain Plan evidence and certificate your planning authority or client needs.

Standards covered

Built around the statutory
BNG requirements

Every calculation follows the framework planning authorities actually check.

Environment Act 2021

The legislation that made Biodiversity Net Gain a mandatory condition of planning permission in England.

Statutory Biodiversity Metric

Defra’s official tool for converting habitats into comparable biodiversity units, and the one planning submissions must use. It replaced Biodiversity Metric 4.0, whose calculations are no longer accepted.

Biodiversity Gain Plan

The document setting out the baseline, proposed habitats and how the 10% gain is secured for 30 years.

30-year monitoring

On-site and off-site gains are secured and monitored for at least 30 years under planning conditions or conservation covenants.

Where it fits

Biodiversity planning,
stage by stage

Biodiversity Net Gain is decided long before anything is submitted. These are the four points in a planning application where the units actually matter.

Pre-application — the baseline

Your ecologist’s survey becomes baseline units before the layout is fixed. This is the stage that decides everything after it: a unit you avoid losing is worth far more than one you recreate, because created habitat carries both a time discount and a difficulty multiplier.

Design — modelling the options

Model proposed habitats against the mandatory 10% while the layout can still change, with area habitats, hedgerows and watercourses reported separately — because a scheme can be in surplus overall and still fail on one of the three.

Submission — the Biodiversity Gain Plan

The baseline, the proposed habitats and the net gain figure, exported as the evidence behind the Biodiversity Gain Plan a planning authority asks for, plus a certificate you can hand to a client or attach to a tender.

After consent — 30 years of it

Permission is granted subject to the gain being secured and monitored for at least 30 years under planning conditions, a Section 106 agreement or a conservation covenant. The assessment stays live rather than being filed with the application.

VerdCore covers the on-site habitat modelling at each of these stages. Off-site gains, trading rules and statutory biodiversity credits are not modelled, and the formal submission must be produced with Defra’s own tool — so this is the working file you iterate in, not the file you submit.

The framework behind the software

A plain-English guide to mandatory Biodiversity Net Gain.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

What is BNG reporting software?

BNG reporting software calculates and evidences Biodiversity Net Gain — the mandatory minimum 10% improvement in biodiversity that most new developments in England must deliver. VerdCore models baseline, created and enhanced habitat units using Defra’s Statutory Biodiversity Metric, reporting area habitats, hedgerows and watercourses separately. It is a planning aid covering on-site habitat: off-site gains, trading rules and credits are not modelled, so your formal submission must be made with Defra’s own tool.

Is Biodiversity Net Gain mandatory?

Yes, but the scope narrowed on 6 August 2026. Under the Environment Act 2021, BNG became a mandatory condition of planning permission in England — 12 February 2024 for major developments and 2 April 2024 for small sites. For applications made on or after 6 August 2026, development on a site of 0.2 hectares or less is exempt where it does not impact onsite priority habitat. Developments still in scope must deliver a minimum 10% net gain in biodiversity, measured and maintained for at least 30 years.

What is the statutory biodiversity metric?

The Statutory Biodiversity Metric is Defra's official tool for converting habitats into biodiversity units based on size, condition, distinctiveness and strategic significance. It replaced Biodiversity Metric 4.0, and calculations from version 4.0 or earlier are not accepted in planning applications. Area habitats, hedgerows and watercourses are measured separately, and each must not fall below its pre-development baseline.

Can VerdCore calculate my 10% net gain?

Yes. VerdCore includes a Statutory Biodiversity Metric calculator that models your baseline and post-development habitat units and shows your net gain percentage against the mandatory 10% requirement, alongside your carbon tracking rather than in a separate spreadsheet.

Does VerdCore produce a Biodiversity Gain Plan?

VerdCore's BNG calculator and reporting output give you the baseline, the proposed habitats and the net gain evidence needed to support a Biodiversity Gain Plan submission, plus a Biodiversity Net Gain certificate you can attach to a tender or hand to a client.

Can I use VerdCore for a planning application?

Yes, as the working file behind it. VerdCore models your baseline and post-development habitat units on Defra’s Statutory Biodiversity Metric and shows where you stand against the mandatory 10% for area habitats, hedgerows and watercourses separately — which is what you need while the layout can still move. It covers on-site habitat only: off-site gains, trading rules and statutory credits are not modelled, so the Biodiversity Gain Plan you submit must be produced with Defra’s own tool.

Is there a free plan?

Yes. VerdCore is free to start with no card required: two active sites, unlimited log entries, the Small Sites biodiversity metric and CSV export. Paid plans start from £19/month for firms that need more projects, reports and team seats.

BNG reporting software

Everything you need to evidence Biodiversity Net Gain

Replace the BNG spreadsheet

Three steps to an evidenced 10% net gain

Built around the statutory BNG requirements

Biodiversity planning, stage by stage