Detecting in the UK questions

[no man army]

Hello, for a while ive really wanted to have ago at detecting but i have no idea where to start. Do i need some sort of liscence or permission or can i just go and do it? How do i know where im allowed to go detecting?
For example I want to go detecting in pegwell bay Kent. Can i just buy a detector and then off i go? or will i be seen by pc plod and taken to the station?

any help would be brilliant

James

[Steve T]

Hi no man army

Basically you can search any land/beach in the UK with the landowners permission. You don't need a licence, nor do you need any special permissions EXCEPT in specific areas of historical importance, such as Roman villa sites, Iron age sites and Stonehenge ( ). Most beaches are 'public' owned so you don't need permission BUT...some beaches are privately owned and you WILL need permission.

Basic rule of thumb for searching with an MD in the UK........get the landowners permission.

Before any of that though, you need to read this.....

Searching tips

.......as this will hopefully help a lot.


Good luck and don't forget to post your finds !

Steve T

[no man army]

Thankyou Steve very helpful indeed

Cheers James

[Steve T]

No problems

One other thing is to practice in your garden with your detector first. Find a patch where you get no signal and bury a coin. Detect it and then re-bury it at a different depth to get a feel for your machine. Twiddle with the knobs and see how that alters the detection. This will help you a lot when out in the field.

There are two things you need to learn fast. Firstly, how to differentiate between the noise an old fag packet makes, and the noise a gold coin makes.........Secondly, how to keep the MD flat throughout your swing. Most of the time, new detectorists swing the MD up at each end of the swing, which means you miss lots of stuff on the perimeter of your swing. Practice with it to teach yourself how to keep your swing 'flat' and avoid swinging 'up' at the end of each swing.



Steve T

[no man army]

Cheers for the info Steve. I'm not sure if I can even go detecting now. Ive read about pegwell bay and found that it was the site of viking landings and is of scientific importance so detecting is not allowed (I think)
Is there a way I can find out for sure?
Or could I ask the council and tell them I will inform them of any findings of historical interest? apparently theres alot of gold and silver there

James

[shadowwolf]

Pegwell bay used to be owned by some hovercraft company, not sure about nowadays. If you do get out to any of the crashed aircraft sites that are supposed to be in the bay they will be out of bounds for detecting and digging without mod permission.
SW.

[no man army]

Cheers for the info. I just wanted to check out the bay and maybe find some spent shells or some more Royal artillery cap badges, I didnt want to go digging up a Lancaster haha.
Would I need to ask the MOD if i dig anywhere at pegwell bay or just the crash sites

James

[shadowwolf]

If Pegwell bay is a public access beach you can metal detect upon it, unless it is covered by any odd laws/millitary bye-laws. Best to check to see if it is a site of specific scientific importance

[no man army]

How would I go about doing that? Contact the local council?

Sorry for asking stupid questions but Im new to this MD stuff, wouldnt even know how to turn a metal detector on

[shadowwolf]

I've just done a quick Google search for you and I am sorry to say that both Sandwich and Pegwell bay are sites of International importance because of the bird breeding colonies.
Sorry both are bird reserves.
Sandwich & Pegwell Bay - Kent Wildlife Trust
SW