BASC began as the Wildfowlers Association of Great Britain and Ireland (WAGBI), founded by Stanley Duncan, an engineer and gun shop owner from Hull, in 1908.

He was also concerned to protect coastal habitats to preserve wildfowl and defend shooting from "protectionist extremists" wishing to ban the sport.

The first president was Sir Ralph Payne-Gallwey, a notable Victorian and Edwardian sportsman and author of several books on shooting.

[5] Following this, WAGBI appointed its first full-time director, a former naval officer and Liverpool businessman, Commander John Anderton, who summed up his agenda as "doing one's best for something one likes – backed by the conviction that what one is doing is right."

[7] The council is advised by a series of committees for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, game shooting, deer stalking and wildfowling.

Members can also request advice from BASC's expert staff on issues involving shooting and firearms certification and licensing, land management and gamekeeping.

In politics BASC operates on an all-party basis and they ensured that shooting was not damaged by the Hunting Act 2004, preserved the legal right for young people to continue to go shooting with airguns, where they have the permission of the landowner, and secured an exemption from the ban on the cosmetic docking of dogs tails for working gundogs.

[14] BASC has in the past opposed attempts to ban the use of lead shot, despite the stance of its former chief executive, arguing that further restrictions do not have a robust evidence base and that compliance with the law and proper processing of game meat manages the risks.