A Special Protection Area (SPA) is the land designated under [Directive 2009/147/EC on the Conservation of Wild Birds](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32009L0147). SPAs are strictly protected sites classified in accordance with [Article 4 of the EC Birds Directive](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=celex:31979L0409), which came into force in April 1979. They are classified for rare and vulnerable birds (as listed on Annex I of the Directive), and for regularly occurring migratory species. Data supplied has the status "Classified". The data does not include "Potential" sites. Boundaries are mapped against Ordnance Survey MasterMap. Full metadata can be viewed on [data.gov.uk](https://data.gov.uk/dataset/174f4e23-acb6-4305-9365-1e33c8d0e455/special-protection-areas-england).