Wildlife award for Brooksby college campus

SMB College Group’s Brooksby campus has been awarded the Hedgehog Friendly Campus Silver accreditation for the efforts of students and staff.

The award provides a framework which supports universities, colleges, student unions and primary schools to create positive change for hedgehogs and other wildlife on their sites and enables staff and students to recognise their own impact on nature.

In 2021, Brooksby campus was given the Bronze award, becoming one of the first further education campuses to achieve official accreditation.

Students and lecturers have since continued their hard-work to progress onto the Silver award.

To achieve the accreditation, staff and students put 19 actions into place as a direct intention of being hog-friendly, building six bug hotels, eight log piles, planting 47 trees and clearing five hedgehog friendly ponds.

The Brooksby college’s hedgehog friendly team is coordinated by animal management lecturer and veterinary nurse, Beth Prior.

Talking about the project, she said: “We are so excited to announce that Brooksby has been recognised as a Silver Hedgehog Friendly Campus.

"We’re looking forward to working towards gold this year.

“We would like to say a huge thank you to our wonderful student hedgehog ambassadors, who volunteered their time to protect hedgehogs and make our campus much safer for wildlife.”

The Auditor from Hedgehog Friendly Campus said: “Great work SMB College Group Brooksby Campus.

"We are particularly impressed by your efforts to remove litter from rivers, 16kg of rubbish.

"Amazing! We would also love to see the loaned footprint tunnels given to staff and the outcomes of it.”