Foraging law & land access

Under the Theft Act 1968, s.4(3), picking wild mushrooms (along with wild flowers, fruit and foliage) growing on land you don't own is not theft, provided it's for your own personal, non-commercial use and not done for reward or sale. This is the legal basis that makes everyday foraging possible in England and Wales.

This defence has limits. It doesn't give you a right to be on the land in the first place — you still need permission or a lawful right of access (see below) — and it doesn't override site-specific protections or species protections.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, s.13 and Schedule 8 adds two important restrictions:

• It is an offence to uproot any wild plant or fungus without the landowner's permission, even if you're only taking a small amount for personal use. Cut or pick fruitbodies; don't dig up the mycelium or substrate.
• Schedule 8 lists fungi species that are fully protected. For these species, it is an offence to pick, damage or destroy them at all — the Theft Act's personal-use defence does not apply. Schedule 8 species must be left where they are.

• Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs): picking is generally an offence without the consent of the relevant nature conservation body, regardless of species or quantity — check before you forage on or near an SSSI.
• CRoW Act 2000 / open access land: the 'right to roam' on foot over mapped open access land does not include a right to forage. Access rights and foraging rights are separate — walking somewhere legally doesn't mean picking there is permitted.
• National Trust land: has its own published foraging policy; check it before picking on Trust-owned sites.
• Forestry England woodland: the 'Forest Fungi Code' permits personal-use picking but bans commercial picking; follow the Code's quantity and conduct guidance.
• Crown Estate land ⚠️: there is no single official Crown Estate foraging policy page — picking here is governed in practice by the general Theft Act/Wildlife and Countryside Act position plus any SSSI or other site designation that applies.

Scotland has a materially different, and more generous, legal position. The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 created statutory rights of responsible access to most land and inland water, set out in the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. This code explicitly covers foraging: personal-use picking of fungi and berries is allowed as part of responsible access, while picking for commercial purposes still needs the landowner's permission.

The Code asks foragers to take only what they need, avoid damaging habitats, and follow the same conservation-minded approach set out in our code of conduct — statutory access rights are a freedom, not licence to strip a site.