As a professional trainer, I see a lot of logbooks. Logbooks are a key piece of your training portfolio and a pre-requisite for joining our bat licence training. However, the quality of logbooks I review varies widely. In this blog post I explain some simple tips for making your logbook stand out from the crowd.
What is a logbook?
A logbook is a record of your experience working with bats. It includes basic information about the survey (date, survey type), your role in the survey (including how long it took), what bat species you encountered (e.g. live bats or bat droppings, any roosts surveyed or bats handled) and what you gained from the experience (e.g. knowledge gained, equipment used or skill practised).
Why is logbook needed?
By compiling a record of your experience, you are able to:
- Identify any gaps in your experience.
- Demonstrate your experience to others, including trainers and people issuing licences.
When is a logbook required?
There are different rules for each of the devolved nations.
- England – there are different rules for different types of licence. If you are upgrading from a class 1 to a class 2, 3 or 4, you are asked to provide two out of three pieces of supporting information (a logbook being one of them).
- Wales – you are required to submit a logbook when you apply for a bat survey licence.
- Scotland – the application form requires you to include details of your experience (handling/identification, roosts, hibernation sites and survey methods), rather than a standalone document.
- Northern Ireland – there is no requirement to supply a logbook although the application form requires you to detail any bat experience.
Is there a standard format?
- Natural England – no specific format required.
- Natural Resources Wales – have a standard format available from their website.
- Nature Scot – no standard logbook format, however the application form requires specific information.
- Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs – no specific format required.
I have created an example logbook which can be downloaded here. This is based on the Natural Resources Wales, with some empathises (colour and bold text) and sums added.
6 tips for improving your logbook
- Think about the reader – Are you making it easy for them to extract the information they need? How is your logbook organised; use tabs for different survey types and include a sum which tallies the total of the relevant experience. Remember only tally numbers which count – if you didn’t encounter bats, don’t count it.
- Update it regularly – It’s easier to record things as you go, rather than try to remember what you did two years ago.
- Be specific – Include the date, site (if not confidential), the survey type, equipment and techniques used, the bat species you encountered (and how you confirmed the species), was a roost present (if so, what type?), and how many bats did you encounter/handle?
- Diversity is key – emergence surveys are great but provide limited opportunity for learning. A good logbook will include a range of survey types; Preliminary Roost Assessments, bat boxes, endoscope surveys, catching, radio tracking, etc.
- Add the personal touch – Quantitative information (e.g. number bats handled or hours spent surveying) is important but Qualitative information (e.g. what did you gain from the experience?) really makes your logbook standout.
- Get it signed-off – no one has every line of their logbook signed but aim for as many as you can.
When someone opens your logbook, they should be convinced that you have the necessary experience. This is achieved by a combination of detailed content and good presentation.
Need some help?
In Excel, text should be kept to a minimum (whilst conveying the key information). The Oxford Guide to Plain English is a useful guide for producing to better written material.
Just because it’s in Excel, doesn’t mean that it has to be boring. If you need some help presenting the information, I recommend following the ‘CRAP’ principles setup in Robin Williams’ The Non-designers Design Book.
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