Rescue centre offers a lifeline to injured wildlife
[HESSILHEAD WILDLIFE RESCUE TRUST is situated near Beith,
in North Ayrshire. It was set up as a charity in 1986, although its founders Andy and Gay had been caring for injured and orphaned wildlife since 1970, when they rescued a fox cub from a gamekeeper and his dogs. As the number of casualties increased year on year, Andy and Gay needed financial and practical help. Once the trust was set up, new aviaries and enclosures were built. A membership scheme proved popular and many volunteers were recruited. The centre now occupies a 20-acre site, including woodland, marsh and open water. That gives a variety of release sites for its patients. Approximately 3,500 wildlife casualties are now treated each year, with the aim of returning them to the wild. Among the many hedgehogs, foxes and familiar garden birds there are deer, otters, badgers and seals. All have been rescued and are rehabilitated. In addition, swans are treated regularly, along with buzzards, peregrines, herons and sea birds. The centre operates a 24-hour rescue service and there are more than 60 enclosures and aviaries, a hedgehog hospital, a seal/swan unit and intensive care facility. It also offers training courses on the handling, care and treatment of wildlife casualties. Spring and summer are especially busy, with hundreds of nestling birds being hand reared. Care is taken to rear all youngsters with minimum human contact. That prevents wild birds and mammals becoming too used to people, so giving them a good chance of survival in the wild. Hessilhead is primarily a voluntary organisation. Its volunteers help in many ways: fundraising, building and maintenance, driving patients to the centre and daily cleaning and feeding. q
30 30
Volunteers’ Week is a chance to say ‘Thank You!’
[JUNE HAS BEEN designated the #MonthOfCommunity, with a
range of events encouraging people to think about and join in with the wide variety of positive activities and initiatives happening in local communities across the UK. It includes special events such as Small Charity Week and culminates in Thank You Day on 4 July. The month of acknowledgements kicked off on 1 June with the beginning of Volunteers' Week, an annual campaign which sees charities, voluntary groups, social organisations and volunteers themselves come together to recognise the incredible impact that volunteering has in UK communities. This year’s theme is ‘A time to say thanks’ – recognising that, during an exceptionally difficult year due to the coronavirus pandemic, people from all walks of life around the UK have taken the time to volunteer and made a huge difference to people and their communities every day: just as they do every year. Nationally, volunteering contributed an estimated £18.2bn to the UK economy in 2017-18 alone – almost 1% of GDP. Each day from 1-7 June focuses on a different theme of volunteering, such as youth volunteering, employer supported volunteering and environmental volunteering. Each day is a chance to take the time to say ‘thank you’ to volunteers across the UK – and the co-ordinators are calling for all charities and volunteers to get involved. Sarah Vibert, interim chief executive of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations, which co-ordinates Volunteers’ Week in England, said: “Volunteers are always working at the heart of every UK community. It is hard to overstate the incredible impact they have made during an incredibly challenging year. The pandemic has rightly raised the profile of volunteering and more people than ever are aware of the immense contribution being made every single day by the amazing volunteers across the UK. We must ensure this recognition continues. That is why, on this 37th annual Volunteers’ Week, it’s time to say: thank you volunteers!” The response to the COVID pandemic has seen volunteers coming together to support wherever they can. That can be seen in the 400,000 active volunteers who were signed up by the NHS Volunteer Responders. Natashia Davies, national senior programme lead for volunteering at NHS Health Education England, added: “Hundreds of thousands of people have stepped forward to support our NHS through voluntary action. This Volunteers’ Week we will showcase some of the amazing things these volunteers have supported us to do during the pandemic, and say to our regular volunteers who have had to take some time out temporarily to stay safe: we can’t wait to have you back!” q
