Wild Youth Foundation
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Animal Testing in Great Britain
Animal testing is the use of living animals in scientific experiments and research. In the UK, animals can be used for a range of purposes, including medical research, developing and testing medicines, studying diseases, and testing the safety of chemicals and other substances.
The use of animals in research is a complex and often controversial issue. Supporters argue that animal research can contribute to understanding diseases and developing treatments, while animal-welfare organisations and campaigners raise concerns about the suffering animals can experience and whether some experiments could be replaced with methods that do not involve animals.
How is animal research regulated?
In Great Britain, the main law governing scientific procedures involving animals is the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA).
ASPA regulates procedures involving "protected animals" where the procedure may cause pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm. Protected animals include living vertebrates, such as mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish, as well as living cephalopods such as octopuses. Certain embryos and larvae are also covered once they reach specified stages of development.
Research involving regulated procedures requires licensing by the Home Office. There are three main types of licence:
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Personal licences authorise individuals to carry out specified procedures.
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Project licences authorise particular programmes of scientific work.
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Establishment licences authorise places where regulated procedures are carried out.
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The Home Office's Animals in Science Regulation Unit (ASRU) is responsible for administering and enforcing the regulatory system.
A central part of the UK's system is the 3Rs: Replacement, Reduction and Refinement.
Replacement means using a scientifically satisfactory method that does not involve protected animals wherever possible.
Reduction means using the minimum number of animals necessary to achieve the scientific objectives.
Refinement means modifying procedures, care and accommodation to minimise pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm.
Before a project licence is granted, the proposed research is subject to a harm–benefit analysis. This considers the likely harm to the animals alongside the potential scientific, medical, environmental or other benefits of the research.
This means that animal research is not simply permitted because a researcher wishes to conduct an experiment. A regulated project must meet the requirements of ASPA and demonstrate that the proposed work is justified.
Statistics on Animal Testing in Great Britain
2.54 million scientific procedures involving living animals were carried out in Great Britain.
Source : Home Office - Annual statistics of scientific procedures on living animals, Great Britain 2025. Updated 20th July 2026
The latest figures, published 9 July 2026, show that in 2025:
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2.54 million scientific procedures involving living animals were carried out in Great Britain.
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2.46 million involved animals being used for the first time.
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1.32 million were experimental procedures.
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1.22 million were procedures for the creation and breeding of genetically altered animals.
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95% of all procedures involved mice, fish, birds or rats.
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Dogs accounted for 2,889 experimental procedures in 2025.
Source : Home Office - Annual statistics of scientific procedures on living animals, Great Britain 2025. Updated 20th July 2026
Camp Beagle
Camp Beagle is a permanent animal-rights protest camp located outside MBR Acres in Wyton, Cambridgeshire. MBR Acres is a facility operated by Marshall BioResources that breeds beagles for use in laboratory research. Camp Beagle was established in the summer of 2021 and has maintained a continuous presence outside the facility since then.
The campaign began following public attention surrounding beagles being transported from MBR Acres to laboratories. Since its establishment, Camp Beagle has sought to raise awareness of the use of dogs in scientific research and to campaign for the closure of MBR Acres.
What does Camp Beagle aim to achieve?
Camp Beagle's central aim is to close MBR Acres and end the breeding of beagles for laboratory research. The campaign also calls for a move away from animal experimentation and greater use of Non-Animal Methods (NAMs) in scientific and medical research.
The campaign describes its work through three main areas:
Investigate – Camp Beagle maintains a permanent presence outside MBR Acres and says it monitors activity at the facility, gathers information and investigates the treatment and movement of the beagles.
Expose – The campaign seeks to bring greater public attention to the use of animals in research through demonstrations, social media, media coverage, footage, Freedom of Information requests and information provided by whistleblowers.
Build political pressure – Camp Beagle campaigns for political change by encouraging members of the public to contact politicians, organising petitions and supporting parliamentary debate around animal experimentation and the development of non-animal research methods. The campaign states that its parliamentary petitions have each attracted more than 100,000 signatures and resulted in parliamentary debates.
MBR Acres is part of the wider debate surrounding the use of animals in scientific research. Beagles bred at the facility are supplied to laboratories for research, including toxicology studies. Camp Beagle argues that breeding animals specifically for laboratory experimentation raises significant ethical concerns and that scientific research should increasingly move towards methods that do not require animals.
The campaign also argues that modern Non-Animal Methods, including approaches based on human biology and human data, can provide alternatives to some forms of animal research. This has made the campaign about more than the conditions at one facility: it has become part of a wider debate about the ethics, effectiveness and future of animal experimentation in the UK.
Camp Beagle remains an active campaign, with protesters maintaining a presence outside MBR Acres and continuing to campaign for the closure of the facility and an end to the use of animals in research.
How Can You help end this?
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Raise Awareness
Often, what keeps these barbaric policies in place isn't widespread support but sheer ignorance of their existence. Once people uncover the brutal truth behind animal testing, they are more likely to rally against it and demand its end. Share what you've learned about MBR acres in the most effective way possible! Whether you're chatting with friends and family or posting on social media, make it engaging.
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Join In
Camp Beagle and the protest infrastructure are already in place. Join like-minded individuals and show your support by attending the protest camp located at:
Wyton, Huntington PE28 2DT
Or at the very least, follow along on a social media platform by clicking on the icons below.
And be sure to regularly check their website by clicking on the link
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Get Political
Politics influences every aspect of life, and animal testing in the UK continues to persist under outdated laws that allow it to continue. It's crucial that we push to outlaw this practice once and for all. Your voice may seem small, but it can create a significant impact. Contacting your local MP is the easiest way to influence change—copy and paste our email template and send it.
Sign the petition urging the government to end animal testing.