Pest control was called out to Ysbyty Glan Clwyd hospital in Denbighshire more than 350 times in four years, according to Freedom of Information figures reported by the BBC this week, with rats, mice and fleas among the problems logged between 2021 and 2024. The same data shows Wrexham’s hospital made 314 call-outs over the same period - and that every north Wales hospital already has a contract for eight pest control visits a year, with the call-outs coming on top. It would be easy to read those numbers as a scandal. In our experience they tell a more useful story: large, warm, busy buildings are under constant pest pressure all year round, and the real test is not whether pests ever appear but how quickly and systematically each sighting is dealt with. Here is what the figures actually show, why hospitals attract so many pests, and what anyone responsible for a building - from a clinic to a corner cafe to a family home - should take from them.
Key takeaways
- FOI figures reported by the BBC show Ysbyty Glan Clwyd called pest control out more than 350 times between 2021 and 2024, with problems including rats, mice, fleas, ants, flies, birds and wasps.
- Wrexham’s hospital logged 314 call-outs in the same four years, and Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor 127 - on top of the eight pest control visits a year that every north Wales hospital is contracted for, according to the BBC.
- Hospitals are not unusually dirty. They are large, warm, complex buildings with kitchens, waste streams, drains and dozens of entry points - exactly the conditions rats, mice, insects and birds look for.
- The year-by-year breakdown in the BBC report shows 2024 had the fewest call-outs of the four years at both of the biggest sites - in our experience the pattern a sustained proofing and prevention programme produces.
- The lesson for any premises is the same: act on the first sighting, keep waste tightly managed, and put pest prevention on a schedule rather than waiting for a problem to force your hand.
What do the FOI figures actually show?
According to the BBC, the data released by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board under the Freedom of Information Act covers hospitals across north Wales. Ysbyty Glan Clwyd in Bodelwyddan - a major district general hospital with approximately 466 beds - called pest control out 91 times in 2021, 92 times in 2022, 131 times in 2023 and 45 times in 2024, with issues including rats, mice, fleas, ants, flies, birds and wasps. The BBC also reports that rats were reported at a pre-operation assessment clinic after chewing through walls; the health board said that following rapid remedial works no further incidents have been reported.
Wrexham’s hospital made 314 call-outs over the same four years - 149 in 2021, 102 in 2022, 45 in 2023 and 18 in 2024 - with rats, flies, wasps, gulls and pigeons all causing issues, the BBC reports. Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor had 127 call-outs, while among the smaller sites Abergele Hospital had 106, Bryn y Neuadd 93, Llandudno 91, Rhyl Alexandra 70 and Colwyn Bay 51. Importantly, all of these figures are additional call-outs: according to the FOI response, every north Wales hospital is contracted for eight visits a year.
The health board’s director of environment and estates told the BBC that pest control arrangements “continue to be managed routinely”, adding: “given the size and complexity of our hospital sites, particularly those in rural locations surrounded by open land, occasional pest sightings can occur despite ongoing prevention and monitoring measures”, and that “we have clear procedures in place to respond promptly and effectively whenever issues are identified.”
Why do hospitals attract so many pests?
Nothing in these figures surprises a professional pest controller. In our experience, hospitals combine almost every pest attractant in one estate: they are heated around the clock, so there is no cold season indoors; they prepare and serve food at scale, generating kitchen waste, food deliveries and bin stores that need constant discipline; and their long service corridors, ducting, voids, drains and loading bays give rodents sheltered routes through the building, while flat roofs and ledges suit gulls and pigeons. Location plays its part too: the health board’s statement referenced sites in rural locations surrounded by open land, and in our experience that kind of setting keeps a standing population of rats, mice and insects close to the building line all year round.
That is why a pest sighting in a large building is not, by itself, evidence of poor hygiene. Rats do not check a food hygiene rating before they follow a warm air current into a loading bay. What matters is the system around the sighting: monitoring that catches activity early, proofing that closes the routes in, and a rapid, documented response when something does get through. On the BBC’s account, the north Wales figures describe exactly that reactive machinery in action - hundreds of call-outs are hundreds of occasions when a problem was reported and a professional was brought in to deal with it.
Is a pest control contract with eight visits a year normal?
Yes - and for high-risk sites it can be more. Planned preventive pest control is standard practice for hospitals, food manufacturers, restaurants, schools and warehousing, and it is the model we run for our own commercial pest control clients. A proper contract is not just spraying and traps: it means regular inspections of the whole site, monitoring points that reveal activity before staff ever see a pest, proofing recommendations to close entry routes, and written reports that stand up to an environmental health officer or auditor. For healthcare settings specifically - where the tolerance for pest activity is effectively zero in clinical areas - we cover the extra requirements on our hospital and clinic pest control page.
The reactive call-outs sit on top of that schedule, and their trajectory is the most encouraging part of the BBC’s figures. Ysbyty Glan Clwyd’s call-outs fell from a peak of 131 in 2023 to 45 in 2024, and Wrexham’s fell from 149 in 2021 to 18 in 2024, according to the reported breakdown. The FOI data does not say why the numbers fell, but in our experience that is what a sustained proofing and prevention programme produces: as entry routes are closed and monitoring catches problems earlier, the reactive workload drops away.
What can businesses and facilities managers learn from this?
First, plan for pest pressure as a permanent operating condition, not a one-off emergency. If a hospital with a professional contract and eight visits a year still generates call-outs, a restaurant, care home, office or warehouse without any programme is simply not seeing what is happening in its voids and bin stores. Second, waste discipline does a remarkable amount of the work: secure, lidded, regularly collected waste removes the food source that sustains rats, mice, flies and wasps, and we set out the compliance side in our guide to commercial waste, recycling and pest control. Third, act on the first sighting. A single rat dropping in a stock room is a quick fix; an established rodent population in a wall void is not, and this summer’s heat is already driving rats into UK buildings in unusual numbers.
What should you do about rats, fleas or wasps in your own property?
The same principles scale down to a house. Deal with sightings immediately, keep food waste sealed, and get professional help rather than waiting to see if the problem goes away - it almost never does. Our technicians are qualified to RSPH (BPCA) Level 2 and handle rats, mice, fleas and wasp nests nationwide, with a 24-hour response available every day of the year except Christmas Day. JG Pest Control is rated 4.8 on Trustpilot with 26,000+ reviews. If something is scratching, scuttling or buzzing where it should not be, call the number at the top of this page and we will get a technician to you fast.
Hospital pest call-outs: your questions answered
According to Freedom of Information figures reported by the BBC, Ysbyty Glan Clwyd called pest control out more than 350 times between 2021 and 2024, Wrexham’s hospital 314 times and Ysbyty Gwynedd 127 times, with smaller hospitals in the region logging between 51 and 106 call-outs each. These were in addition to the eight pest control visits a year that every north Wales hospital is contracted for.
The BBC report lists rats, mice, fleas, ants, flies, wasps, gulls and pigeons across the health board’s sites. Rodents and insects were reported inside buildings, while gulls and pigeons typically cause problems on roofs, ledges and around waste areas.
No. A call-out is a record of a response, usually to a sighting, and large warm buildings with kitchens, waste streams and many entry points attract pests regardless of how well they are cleaned. Frequent call-outs alongside a scheduled prevention contract show the reporting and response system working. The concern would be a building with pest activity and no professional response at all.
It depends on the risk profile of the site. The hospitals in the BBC report are contracted for eight visits a year, and food businesses commonly schedule regular inspections alongside monitoring between visits. A professional provider will assess the building, its history and its legal obligations, then set a schedule that keeps the site protected and audit-ready.