Dorking Swift Conservation

A wonderful opportunity for children to be part of a beautiful book raising money for the Manda Slater Memorial Fund. Manda touched the lives of many children in Dorking through managing a local nursery and of course had a passion for swifts. Please encourage your children to join in—it's a fantastic cause

Here's a little swift-related competion for kids aged 5 to 11... something to do when they're stuck indoors 🌧😀

🌟 Amazing News! 🌟

You can now purchase a Manda Slater Memorial Fund swift box at Buckland Nurseries Garden Centre on the A25! These swift boxes are fantastic for so many reasons:

✨ Made by Dorking Men's Shed
✨ Look great on any building
✨ Provide essential nesting sites for our incredible swifts
✨ And most importantly keep Manda's memory alive 🌈

Please get one and support a wonderful cause! 💚

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/qbC4Cpsmjr3iETkY/

It all began in 2020 when Manda Slater and I founded Dorking Swift Conservation with the help and advice from SPARE Swift Protection Association Reigate. We had watched the swifts return year after year to nest in the Adult Education Building on Dene Street. When the building and it's surrounding land were set for redevelopment, we campaigned tirelessly to .

Tragically my best friend and neighbour Manda Slater passed away suddenly and the Manda Slater Memorial Fund was set up by Manda's family. Since then 100's of swift boxes have been installed in and around Dorking in Manda's honour. Dorking Swift Conservation is thrilled to announce that 10 swift bricks have been installed in the new children's home on Dene Street, the very place where our journey began.

Manda would be over the moon knowing that we have achieved our goal of saving this nest site and colony for many more people to watch in awe each year. Thank you to everyone who has supported us, now is the perfect time to watch the swifts so keep your . We hope to see you on one of our walks and stay tuned for more posts during Swift Awareness Week 29th June to 7th July

Have you seen YOUR first Swift?! We are overjoyed to hear that several residents have spotted theirs...

Do get in touch if so! We would love to hear more about your experience.

Dorking 🏠 Swifts 🐦 of 2024 ✨

Herewith our first post on our brand new Instagram page and our current page, dedicated to the Swifts of Dorking!

We are excited to be sharing our latest updates, including monitoring, nest box and tower installs, collaborations and partners, appreciation, events, information on public walks and talks across Dorking with you 🙌🏼

Our wonderful spring and summer visitors who remain forever feeding, sleeping and even mating on the wing during breeding season, will be eager to socialise and nest upon their arrival after travelling ALL the way from Africa! Therefore we must be ready 💪🏼

If you spot a Swift, please do let us know! We will be actively monitoring Dorking in the coming weeks and cannot WAIT to spot our first bird. See you soon!

Dorking Swift Conservation 📋

We are working with in Dorking to add swift bricks in their developments. The first project is Pixham Mills. We welcome others developers to work with us.

Wildlife Chimney Stack proposal for new build in Hertfordshire. The chimney is for aesthetic reasons but neatly incorporates integrated wildlife habitat such as Bat Bricks and Swift Bricks. What a great idea. New builds don't have chimneys and they look a little odd because of it so this is a great feature. Bolton Council Bury Council

Thank you to the team at stonegatehomes.co.uk for supporting Dorking Swift Conservation. Stonegate Homes will be incorporating swift bricks into the new Pixham Mills development as well as adding a Swift Tower. They are leading the way in Mole Valley by incorporating swift bricks into new builds - amazing! Swift bricks are easy and cheap to add to any new development at Dorking Swift Conservation we would be happy to work with anyone looking to help ...... and Manda would be very pleased ❤️Manda Slater Memorial Fund

Brilliant news! There are swifts nearby so fingers crossed they find the swift boxes

Two more boxes up in Dorking - St. Paul's CE Primary School. Thanks Steve Clarke 😊

For World Swift Day here is my latest swift painting, 12 x 12" oil on canvas. It will be on display at Horsham Artists Open Studios this weekend.

Swifts- where are the rest of the breeders? I have always loved weather, I paint it, I observe it, I record it and I married a meteorologist! It shapes my two main painting subjects, landscape and birds. At migration time I study weather mod…

We hit over a hundred thousand, absolutely fantastic news....well done everyone.

You know that trick of throwing up a nut and catching it in your mouth? Not easy right? Imagine doing that with a moving insect when you travelling at 70mph? For that's just normal dining Enter Now @ https://rb.gy/migl8v
Incredible pic by Amir Ben Dov 😀

Petition: Make swift bricks compulsory in new housing to help red-listed birds Swifts have declined by over 50% in the UK. Adult swifts, known for site-fidelity, return to the same nests. We want swift bricks to be required in all new housing, to provide homes for these birds. Surveys show these are used by red-listed swifts, house martins, starlings and house sparrows.

A beautiful story inspired by Manda and written by her sister Sarah Relf. Please order your copy and proceeds go to the Manda Slater Memorial Fund ❤️

Eleventy three 'final' edits later, 'Apricity' is being printed right now. Available for sale very soon via Manda Slater Memorial Fund's shiny new website - also to be launched very soon. Watch this space...

WHERE ARE THE NOW? well our crystal ball (otherwise known as ) suggest that they are getting closer to the NW of the as they prepare to cross the Atlantic to Liberia.
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Not long now 😍

Very soon it will be time for our to say 'au revoir' to the North West Congo and its misty rainforests and start the next leg of their migration odyssey across the inhospitable Gulf of Guinea!

Our are snaffling insects above the central congo forest swamplands which make up 18% of the entire worlds remaining rainforest, but last year scientists revealed that they store almost 50% more carbon per sq mile than the amazon!🧐

We’re really pleased to announce that Stonegate Homes will be working with Dorking Swift Conservation on their Pixham Mills development www.pixhammills.co.uk with the introduction of swift bricks and a swift tower to provide much needed nesting sites, grow our swift colonies and ensure the long term conservation of these iconic summer birds

This is really exciting news that a local developer is helping to save our declining swift numbers. Swifts are on the red list in the UK and officially classed as 'endangered' and at risk of extinction.

Regents House by Dorking Main Station has had planning proposals submitted by Clarion, this site accommodates our largest swift colony of over 22 active nesting sites. The plans show the demolition of this building which will have a massive negative effect. By collaborating with Stonegate Homes we can offer a solution, by being in close proximity to Regents House and with the introduction of swift bricks and a swift tower our swifts will have a better chance of survival. Unfortunately, Clarion have not engaged with us and (from what we can see) our local planning dept. have not been “encouraging” the use of swift bricks in new builds in and around Dorking, so a big THANK YOU to Stonegate Homes for listening and willing to take action to help our Dorking Swifts.

Manda who was so passionate about swifts would be proud 😍 https://www.facebook.com/mandaslatermemorialfund