Britain hosts internationally significant populations of both grey and common seals. Their welfare is shaped by entanglement, pollution, disturbance at pupping sites, and intentional killing by some fishing interests.
Seal welfare around British coasts is shaped primarily by human activities — fishing gear entanglement, disturbance at pupping beaches, and intentional killing. The persistent illegal shooting of seals by fishing interests, and the legal but contested shooting near fish farms, represents direct welfare harm to a protected species. Pup disturbance at breeding beaches causes mothers to abandon their young and chicks to be exposed to cold and predation. Conservation organisations and marine wildlife watchers can contribute positively by maintaining distance from hauled-out seals and reporting disturbance or entanglement incidents.