Join Staffordshire Wildlife Trust’s fun, family-friendly challenge between Monday 30th March and Thursday 30th April to help care for wildlife in our county.
Did you know that hedgehogs could be extinct in our children’s lifetimes?
Six-year-old Carter and his four-year-old sister Violet of Cannock Wood are asking children across Staffordshire – with their families, schools, clubs, or learning groups – to join them in taking part in Staffordshire Wildlife Trust’s Hedgehog Walk this spring. The goal is to cover the distance that a hedgehog roams in a single night – 3km – whether walking, wheeling, crawling, or rolling, with Aardman studio’s Timmy and friends alongside them.
It is up to the participants as to where and when they would like to get out in nature and complete their challenge, whether breaking it up into several small feats or opting to do it all in one day – just as long as it is completed between Monday 30th March and Thursday 30th April. In doing so, they will be raising vital funds to look after nature, while highlighting that anyone can play their part in creating safer spaces where wildlife, including hedgehogs, can thrive.
Hedgehog numbers have fallen by 30 per cent in just over a decade, and there are now estimated to be less than 1 million left in the UK, with main threats thought to be habitat and food loss, pesticides, roads, and developments. During the period that this challenge takes place, hedgehogs will be starting to come out of hibernation, so it is time that we start getting ready to look after them. Those taking part in the Hedgehog Walk will really help to raise awareness of their plight and give them the essential protection they need.
Every donation will provide vital support in helping care for wildlife in Staffordshire – For example, every £27 raised could help a local child engage with nature through a play or educational session, while every £50 raised could help look after a local nature reserve for a day.
Whether you’re toddling through the park with Timmy, marching through the woods with Apricot, or counting laps in the playground with Bumpy, every step with Timmy and friends helps build a better future for wildlife. Use the hashtag #HedgehogWalk on social media to share your adventure!
Laura Jones, Fundraising Officer at Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, and mum to Carter and Violet, said: “We were so inspired to join in with the Hedgehog Walk last year after realising that, during our children’s lifetimes, hedgehogs could go extinct.
“After signing up, we quickly saw just how simple, fun, and educational the challenge really is. It helped us truly understand how vital the work of Staffordshire Wildlife Trust is and how much this fundraising can help, which is why we are so excited to be joining in again this year.”
Rachael Peacock, Head of Brand Marketing at Aardman, the creators of Timmy Time, said: “We’re delighted to return with The Wildlife Trust for another Hedgehog Walk, with Timmy and Apricot leading the way once more. It’s a brilliant opportunity for families to enjoy the outdoors together, learn about the wildlife around them, and take part in something that makes a real difference.”
If you would like to sign up, you can do so by visiting www.wildlifetrusts.org/hedgehog-walk, and you and your child will receive a downloadable activity pack full of Timmy Time fun. This includes engaging resources such as posters, activity sheets, fact sheets, and tracking timelines to help mark the 3km milestone, piquing interest and showing young wildlife enthusiasts how to care for the great outdoors. Also, you will have access to everything needed to get fundraising for this important cause.
Alongside this challenge, what can you be doing to help our hedgehogs?
- Create hedgehog highways – Hedgehogs roam a lot throughout the night and you can help them have a safe path to follow. Together with your neighbours, cut a 13cm x 13cm hole in your fence or dig a channel beneath your garden boundaries to connect your gardens.
- Ensure any garden water is safe – Hedgehogs are great swimmers, but if they can find themselves in a steep-sided pond, they will struggle climb out. Provide a ramp or create shallow areas at the edge so they can climb out.
- Provide nesting sites – Ensure they have access to logs, leaf piles, or even purpose-built hedgehog homes so they have a safe place to rest and hibernate.
- Grow a variety of plants – By keeping your garden diverse, you can attract an abundance of natural hedgehog food and create perfect habitats for them.
- Avoid the use of pesticides – Ditch the slug pellets, as they are harmful to hedgehogs. Hedgehogs are natural pest controllers and need a varied supply of invertebrate to stay healthy.
For more information on how to help wildlife where you live, please visit www.wildlifetrusts.org/actions.