Hi hedgehog champions! It’s great you’d like to make your school/scout/guide/youth group more hedgehog friendly.

Unfortunately hedgehogs are very vulnerable in cities but with a few changes to your garden you could help them survive. The great thing is that the changes you make can also benefit other wildlife like birds, butterflies, frogs, toads and even bats!

We recommend watching this short video all about how to support hedgehogs

Here is our list of top things to do

1. Install a hedgehog box/feeding station – you can either make one as described in the video or request one from us – get in touch by email or on social media

2. Put out fresh water and hedgehog food whenever you can.

3. Make a log pile and/or compost heap to provide shelter – you could use any fruit and veg peelings/leftovers or autumn leaves for this

4. Create a pond – this could support thirsty bees and birds as well, not to mention frogs

5. Create hedgehog highways – you could just put a small 5 inch hole in a wooden fence to allow hedgehogs to move between spaces, but better still, you could replace fences with hedges. Hedges are what hedgehogs love best. If you have a metal fence you can’t replace how about digging a small tunnel underneath it and keeping it free of leaves and litter?

6. Talk to your neighbours, or the people that live close to your school/scout hut/hedgehog space about how to support hedgehogs too – here are some tips including leaflets you can post through people’s doors –https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/help-hedgehogs/talk-to-your-neighbours/  Be sure to tell them you are becoming hedgehog champions and want the whole street to get involved!

7. Reckon you can do it? Please let us know and we’ll keep in touch to see if we can assist. If you do spot a hedgehog or create a hedgehog please make a note on this map https://bighedgehogmap.org/