Norfolk had a fifth of England's avian influenza outbreaks

More than a fifth of all bird flu cases in England occurred in Norfolk, as the county became the epicentre for the outbreak, watchdogs have revealed.

Of the 306 avian influenza outbreaks in England since the start of August last year, 65 of them (21pc) were in Norfolk.

The outbreak has had a devastating impact on commercial and small-scale bird keepers in the county, with hundreds of thousands of birds culled.

And a new report put together by Norfolk County Council's Trading Standards department has detailed how the county became the epicentre of the disease in October last year.

During that period, Trading Standards officers responded to 46 cases in the space of just a month.

Measures to keep all poultry and captive birds indoors in England to prevent the spread of bird flu came into force in October last year, while protection zones were set up.

To enforce that, Trading Standards officers spent 185 days on foot patrols, contacting people living within the three-kilometre radius protection zones set up around affected premises.

Norfolk County Council's County Hall headquarters in Norwich (Image: Mike Page)

County Hall's Trading Standards department also enlisted the aid of volunteers to help get the message across, while almost 30,000 letters were sent to people living within the protection zones.

Trading Standards officers also followed up 118 reports of unhoused poultry, providing advice or taking enforcement action to make sure keepers complied with legal requirements.

The mandatory housing of poultry came to an end last month, as restrictions were eased.

The statistics for Norfolk were revealed in the annual report of the Trading Standards department at the council.

Margaret Dewsbury, Norfolk County Council cabinet member for communities and partnerships (Image: Archant)

Margaret Dewsbury, the council's cabinet member for communities and partnerships, said: "Our Trading Standards officers work hard to ensure that consumers and businesses are kept safe.

"Last year was a busy year for the team, and I’m proud of what they have achieved."