TCV Blogs Editor

HogWatch Scotland is TCV Scotland’s hedgehog conservation project, which has been funded by The British Hedgehog Preservation Society until 2021.

HogWatch Scotland aims to understand more about the declining species of hedgehogs in Scotland by conducting torchlight surveys, a variety of events and training courses, working with schools, and implementing hedgehog friendly changes in the landscape.

In 2018, it was revealed that hedgehog numbers had fallen by about 50% since the turn of the century. The report also suggested that hedgehogs are disappearing more rapidly in the countryside, as hedgerows and field margins are lost to intensive farming.

While lockdown restrictions in 2020 has meant that some of the work on TCV projects have come to a temporary stop, this is one area of conservation that people of all ages can carry out at home.

The HogWatch Scotland team have put together this resource pack which has lots of fun and simple activities to encourage hedgehog populations in your area and protecting their habitat.

We are grateful to hedgehog volunteers across the country who continue to send their sightings to the project for us to better understand hedgehog populations, we have over 300 already this year.

Lots of people have been keeping active creating hedgehog houses, feeding stations and Hedgehog Highways – cutting a small hole in their fence to allow wildlife to pass through and open up the landscape.

Kirsty Crawford – TCV Senior Project Officer – Citizen Science

Looking after our native species is vitally important, and there is so much that we can do from our own homes to protect these well-loved mammals.

There are just 4 easy steps to get involved in HogWatch:

1. Volunteer on the Hedgehog Safari
2. Submit a sighting
3. HogWatch at Home – monitor in your own garden
4. Become a hedgehog champion

We may think of hedgehogs of being relatively common and widespread, but there with the decline in both rural and urban habitats, the numbers of these little creatures are declining – worldwide, they are declining faster than tigers worldwide!

For more information and how to get involved, visit the HogWatch Scotland website.

It is a well-known fact that at The Conservation Volunteers, we are committed to caring for and protecting our local green spaces to create happy and healthy communities across the UK.

Green spaces provide communities with places to connect with nature and the positive benefits on people’s physical and mental health from spending time in nature are plentiful.

However, it is not just parks and green spaces that we care for; blue spaces are as important and need as much care and attention.

Ponds provide homes for a huge number of species: plants and fungi, fish, birds, invertebrates, amphibians and even mammals. This blue space also has a positive impact on our mental health, much in the same way that green space can.

From January 2018 – March 2020, with generous funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, TCV Croydon Ponds Project worked with volunteers, community groups, ecologists, and historians to reinvigorate the public profile of the 40+ ponds in the London Borough of Croydon.

Naturally occurring ponds have been part of our landscape for millions of years, and man-made ponds for millennia. Much of our native wildlife has come to depend on them for a source of fresh water.

With increases in intensive agriculture and urbanisation, there has been a marked decrease in our number of ponds across the UK over the last few centuries, making it more important now than ever to protect these havens for wildlife.

We take a look at the work that goes into preserving blue spaces, and why this work is so vital.

Protecting the Wildlife

Ponds are home to a plethora of species, therefore not every pond is the same and requires various conservation methods to ensure that the correct measures are taken to improve and protect them.

Sometimes this can mean dredging slit from a pond, or extending its margins, but managing ponds for wildlife is not always about actively working in and around the pond.

Surveying the wildlife and carefully selecting ways to help encourage it is often more beneficial than any major disruption to the pond itself.

This can take the form of removing invasive species or building ‘hibernaculum’ nearby – a pile of stones, wood and mud – which can be used by amphibians visiting the pond.

Ecological Surveys

The species of plant and animals that are living in the green spaces surrounding ponds is an important way to inform how they should be managed.

During the summers of 2018 and 2019, TCV volunteers surveyed 42 public ponds across Croydon recording the plants both in the ponds and around the water’s edge, as well ‘pond dipping’ to find out what animals were living in the water.

The last surveys had been taken in 1994, therefore the information needed updating if these ponds were going to be given the opportunity to flourish.

It appears that comparing the 1994 and 2019/20 surveys that the ponds that have received management work from TCV and other community groups have improved their species count.

Whilst there have been some that have declined, the reasons for this are unclear. Further habitat management work that has been undertaken through the Croydon Ponds Project and continued improvement work will help these ponds to improve over time.

Invasive Species

Invasive species are non-native plants brought into the UK in the last few centuries that can outcompete our native pond life.

While measures are taken to avoid their spread, pond owners, gardeners and anglers can unwittingly assist in their spread by carrying tiny fragments of the plants on their equipment, shoes or clothing, or by emptying fish tanks or plant holders into wild ponds.

During surveying the ponds, volunteers used the following advice to avoid spreading any invasive plants:

• Check your equipment and clothing for living organisms
• Clean and wash all equipment, footwear and clothing
• Dry all equipment and clothing – some species can live for many days in moist conditions.

TCV Croydon produced an overview of the project, including historical information about the ponds involved in the project, which can be found here.

A write up for the surveys conducted in 2018 and 2019 can be found here, alongside the full dataset from the surveys.

We have been really buoyed at The Conservation Volunteers with all the positive conversations we continue to have with our corporate partners around how we can get back to working together after COVID-19.

In 2019 we had a record-breaking year with over 7,000 employees from our corporate partners volunteer with TCV, supporting hundreds of community projects across the UK.  We know from feedback (98% of employees we surveyed would recommend a day with TCV to a colleague) just how much they enjoy making a difference in local communities.

Our TCV Rep for the day was fantastic, knowledgeable, helpful, enthusiastic, and provided absolutely anything you could need. I really enjoyed my day with TCV and can’t wait to do it again, it was hard work but great fun and really rewarding.

Employee volunteer

Of the 7,000 employee volunteers we worked with last year, an incredible 5,200 volunteers were from the NatWest Group working on 71 sites across England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland.

In October, our tree planting programme ‘I Dig Trees’ in partnership with OVO Energy won the Charity Times CSR Project of the Year – and we also planted our millionth tree!

We launched our new partnership with Sky UK. The amazing fundraising teams from Wates Group ran, paddled, cycled, walked, and baked throughout the year to raise a staggering £100K to support our TCV projects and volunteers.

Rest assured, we are planning for when the restrictions ease and we can once again welcome everyone back, your energy, passion and commitment will be needed more than ever to support our community green spaces as we transition post COVID-19.

To say that 2020 has been a strange year would be somewhat of an understatement. We are living through a pivotal moment of human history and can be forgive for feeling overwhelmed during this time.

Whilst precautions are being taken to protect our physical health, it is important that we also take precautions to protect our mental health

18^th – 24^th May is Mental Health Awareness Week and this year’s theme is kindness.

We are adapting to a new way of living, become more reliant than ever on digital technology to remain connected to our friends, families and colleagues, but one thing that has remain the same is the importance of our public green spaces to provide areas for us to escape to (whilst adhering to physical distancing measures) and take a break from the ‘new normal’.

But it is important that during this time of adjustment and uncertainty, we remain kind not only to others, but to ourselves too.

“We have chosen kindness because of its singular ability to unlock our shared humanity. Kindness strengthens relationships, develops communities and deepens solidarity,” says Mark Rowland, CEO of Mental Health Foundation.

Many of us are already exhibiting kindness within our local communities, however with increased physical distancing measures in place and some people being classed as ‘at risk’ by the NHS, the inability to be active in their communities during this time may cause an increased decline in mental health.

Staying healthy, following Government guidelines and protecting our NHS is itself a social act of kindness. What is kinder than potentially saving lives?

At The Conservation Volunteers, we are advocates of spending time in nature as a way to feel happier and healthier. Spending time in nature has been proven to alleviate the effects of mental health problems, such as anxiety and depression. 

We have been sharing ideas of how to spend more time outside whilst adhering to the Government lockdown measures, and our team have been sharing how they are spending connected to nature whilst working from home.

Whether it be talking daily walks, growing your own produce, bringing nature inside or carrying out activities in your own green space, connecting with nature is a simple way to be a little kinder to yourself.

It is important to remember that we are all doing our very best to get through this pandemic together. With an increased reliance on social media, it is easy to see what others are doing during this time and compare ourselves to on-screen personas.

So please, if you can do just one thing today, be kind. To others, and to yourself.

Across our social media, we have been sharing ways to stay connected to nature at home during this period of physical distancing.

Physical distancing has also meant that many of us are now working from home. For a lot of our team, working outdoors in the fresh air and with nature is the norm.

We have asked our TCV across the UK how they have adjusted to working from home, and how they are staying connected with nature at this time.

From working near a window to bird watch, taking the dog for a walk in a park where calves have just been born, and even naming a local fox, our team are taking advantage of their local green spaces and gardens.

Sara Harrison – TCV Operations Leader (London – Kings Cross)

I don’t have access to a garden but I’ve been enjoying playing ‘spot the fox’ every day from my new home desk next to a window look at my neighbour’s garden.

This fox (I’ve nicknamed her Joan!) follows the sun round the garden all day and makes me very jealous that I’m not outside.

My house plant collection has also been getting much more attention at the moment as well – good time for some propagation and re-potting!

Mark Slater – Head of Information Technology (Central Services – Doncaster)

I am lucky to have a small office overlooking our garden which we as a family have been spending a lot of time in during the current period of lockdown.

Outside of TCV, I volunteer for the Yorkshire Ambulance Service as a community first responder. After a particularly long day in the home office or after returning from a difficult call, there is nothing better I find for my mental health than going for a walk in nature and in the fresh air.

This video was shot on a return from a call I attended recently, it shows to me that we are all together in this as one community sharing the world.

Joanne Smith – TCV Senior Warden (London – Greenwich Peninsula Ecology Park)

Although I carry out site checks on some days, I mostly work from home at the moment. My desk is a dining room table but I have a view of my indoor plants and my small garden.

I live in a really built up area very close to a noisy railway track but I am really lucky to have access to a garden.

Though small, I have stuffed the garden full of plants and mini container ponds, even digging up the lawn to add more herbs and flowers. My newly painted rocking chair is my relaxation space!

I really miss the park and our volunteers but in my spare time I do a bit of gardening therapy and am gradually planting up a neglected communal area nearby.

Kirsty Crawford – TCV Project Officer (Glasgow)

Here are a few photos of my border terrier Finn and what we see on our daily dog walk.

Lots of blossom around Glasgow and we’re lucky our local park within walking distancing has a heard of Highland Cows who have just had their calves.

We’re keeping active every day and looking out for local wildlife to record so we keep up with the Citizen Science elements that I usually look after under the Scotland Counts project. Engaging with nature each day on the dog walk is a nice way to adjust to working from home!

Ruth Gerrard – TCV Development Manager

I usually work from home anyway, but have had to move my workspace into the bedroom whilst my toddler is off nursery. Feels very leafy with the trees outside.

I have also finally got around to putting up the flatpack greenhouse we bought last year, with lots of veg and flowers growing.

We’ve also dug up part of our lawn for growing vegetables. First in are the courgettes!

Michelle Crozier – HR Advisor (Central Services – Doncaster)

I do feel rather lucky to be surround by beautiful open spaces and such picturesque scenery. I have been sharing my ‘home office’ with my daughter’s ‘classroom’.

Our daily walks have been our saviour. Being in the house all day, every day is something we (like most others) are certainly not used to! My girls are swimmers with Rotherham Metro, they go kickboxing and on top of school each day, they lead very busy lives.

The walks we have, saying ‘hello’ to the cows and being able to wander around such fabulous spaces with little or no fear of running into anyone else to have to practice social distancing, has been the one thing I am truly grateful for.

The lovely weather means we’ve been able to appreciate the sights we have on our doorstep, and will continue to do so much more long after all this is over.

Samantha Woods – TCV Team Leader (Leicester)

The Leicester Food Growing Community Support programme is continuing to thrive during the lockdown.

I recently launched a ‘Garden Chats Phoneline’ so that all the groups I usually support in the community can stay in contact and share their stories or get answers to thorny gardening queries.

At lunchtime, I take a walk in the nearby Arboretum and watch spring unfold. The latest flower to blossom on the woodland floor is Lady’s Smock (or Cuckoo Plant). When I’m not at the computer, my workspace is used for seed sowing and potting on the plants that feature in the Lockdown Garden.

Hazel Smoczynska – TCV Administrator (Leeds – Hollybush)

I brought some plants from Hollybush back with me to make my home office greener and it’s really been appreciated by the local wildlife.

Maria Schlatter – TCV Senior Project Officer (London – Camden)

This week, I have moved my home desk away from the wall to face the garden instead. Saving the daily 2+ hour commute is a bonus and this morning I have already spotted jays, two dainty gold finches, tits, and of course loads of grey squirrels and wood pigeon waiting for spills on the ground.

It’s also very important for your eyesight to gaze at longer distance objects away from the screen every so often!

We’ve changed our weekly volunteer newsletter to a twice weekly ‘virtual Camden Green Gym session’ newsletters, which aim for volunteers to remain part of Camden Green Gym in spirit until nature conservation sessions return.

Our volunteers have also been sending us pictures and stories both from their local excursions on foot or bicycle, as well as updates on their lives in lockdown.

Our team has set up a private WhatsApp group to keep in touch with each other and we are haring our indoor/outdoor garden projects, as well as favourite board games, musicals and cook efforts.

Debbie Murrary – TCV Senior Project Officer (Norwich)

I spend time in my garden to connect with nature, and enjoy the wildlife to comes to it.

Ingenious ways to mitigate flooding and improve biodiversity have been invented by volunteers with The Conservation Volunteers (TCV) for tributaries of the River Medway.

Working with South East Rivers Trust (SERT) since 2018, enthusiastic TCV volunteers have used their wits and skills to custom-build fifty ‘leaky’ dams from natural materials on woodland streams in the Medway catchment area.

The dams help reduce the flow of water into vulnerable towns and villages such as Five Oak Green near Tunbridge Wells which flooded during Storm Ciara in February 2020. The catchment area, stretching across parts of Kent, Surrey and East Sussex, has a history of disastrous flooding, notably during the Great Floods of 1968.

In 2013, 900 homes were inundated over Christmas, leading to a £19 million investment in flood defences under the Medway Flood Action Plan.

The dams also create more habitat for scarce wetland plants and animals. In Bedgebury Forest, home to the National Pinetum, patches of greater tussock sedge (carex paniculata) can now thrive in damper, brighter conditions where volunteers have coppiced trees to build the dams and let in more sunlight.

The new habitats will mature over time, adding a greater range of nutrients and niche environments where woodland wildlife can flourish.

Volunteer Owen Johnston who leads the teams building the dams explains: “We use whatever natural materials are to hand – logs, branches, twigs, lumps of stone – to partially block the water-courses and divert floodwater into surrounding parts of the woodland. Occasionally we dig new channels where the layout of the land allows.

“I’ve found it fascinating to learn how to engineer and locate these structures for maximum effect with minimum effort and disturbance. Each stream is different, so you must adapt the basic structures to fit every location. We’ve also enjoyed dreaming up different and sometimes improbable-looking designs, in case one turns out to work exceptionally well. These include ‘living dams’ made of pleached trees (like a laid hedge), palisades, woven spruce branches, and dead hedges stretching across wider valleys.”

Owen says that the effectiveness of the dams is clearly demonstrated by the tide-mark of debris that forms behind them after heavy rainfall.

In addition, a paper reporting quantitative research is being prepared by Kings College London who have set up electronic equipment to monitor the performance of one of the dams.

TCV was approached to carry out the work following an earlier project for SERT at Powdermill stream near Battle in East Sussex. SERT thus knew from experience the task would be ideal for the many skilled and physically active volunteers who regularly turn out alongside thousands of others with varied ages, ability and fitness to improve their local environment, learn new skills and feel good with TCV. F

unders for the dams include the Medway Flood Action Plan and the EU FRAMES (Flood Resilient Areas by Multi-LayEred Safety) project via the European Regional Development Agency and the Environment Agency through DEFRA.

In the long term, the structures will need maintenance and replacing as they naturally deteriorate with time. “It’s a never-ending task,” says Owen (in March 2020) “and we can’t wait to start again when the present restrictions lift!”

Spring is a great time to get out into the fresh air. It’s also a super opportunity to discover the seasonal changes in your local wildlife.

Astronomers say spring starts on 20th March. Yet, due to warmer winters, it seems to get earlier every year for plants and animals, and no-one knows exactly what the consequences will be.

Time for Citizen Science

Citizen Science is a way for people in your community to learn more about local green spaces and share their knowledge with the wider world (while getting active, meeting other volunteers, and inspiring little ones!).

Pick something that sparks local interest and get counting. Often all you need to take part is a simple spotter’s guide, notebook and pencil.

Here’s some ideas to get you started:

Migratory birds

Everyone gets excited about the first cuckoo of spring. But what about the first arctic skua – recorded from 11th April in Hampshire?

Breaking bud

Which trees are coming into leaf and when? How are diseases such as Ash dieback affecting your area?

Pond life

Look out for frog spawn, tadpoles and newts. Amphibians world –wide are under serious stress. The more we know, the more chance there is to save them

Night-wings

Late spring is a good time to count the bat species in your area. This does require specialist detectors, so talk to your local bat group for advice and the equipment you’ll need

Minibeasts

As the weather improves, invertebrates are on the move. You might find something unexpected in your patch. Look out especially for 7-spot ladybirds, butterflies, bumble bee and wasp queens

For guidance on how to set up a project visit TCV’s Citizen Science web page or contact your local TCV office.