Common non-breeding visitor.

Common visitors at all times of the year to Fairlands Valley Lakes (from where they were first recorded in April 1975) and at any of Stevenage’s ponds and ditches. They are also known to raid garden fishponds.

Grey Herons suffer in hard winters and during the winter of 1962/63 the British Breeding population was halved, during that winter the remains of one was found by a pond at Symonds Green.

The most seen together are four at Fairlands Valley Lakes on 6 July 2009.

The 2012 Winter Atlas recorded their presence from six of the tetrads covering Stevenage.