Hedgehog houses installed at Barber Woods

National Star students have made and installed hedgehog houses at an Ullenwood woodland as part of a collaborative project with the Woodland Trust. 

Creating habitats

There have been 96 sightings of hedgehogs in the Ullenwood area and as part of their bid to become a Platinum Hedgehog Friendly campus, students at National Star are trying to create habitats to support this endangered species. 

Hibernating hedgehogs are at risk from dogs and badgers and so by installing wooden houses the hedgehogs can sleep soundly until the spring. 

The wooden hedgehog houses will be covered with twigs and branches and installed deep in hedgerows and woodland to make them attractive to the animals. 

‘As there have been so many hedgehog sighting in the Ullenwood area it is very likely that families of hedgehogs are living in Barber Woods,’ said Elaine Hodgin, Head of Sustainability at National Star. 

Gold Hedgehog Friendly Campus

National Star is one of only three colleges in the UK to be awarded the Gold Hedgehog Friendly Campus award in 2024. Now students and staff at the specialist college hope to join the likes of Durham University, who have achieved platinum status. 

There is no doubt hedgehogs are endangered. The UK’s population is believed to be around 880,000; a decline of a third since the year 2000.  

The student Green Reps and National Star’s Duke of Edinburgh’s Award students installed the new hedgehog houses in Barber Woods. 

Working together to achieve a common goal

National Star Volunteer Ade McKie said: ‘We are helping to save nature, we have used items that would otherwise be discarded and very importantly, we have all worked together to achieve a common goal. Making the hedgehog houses has been a fantastic project.’  

Harry Shadwell, Site manager for Barber Wood said: ‘It is great to see local communities using our woodlands to help create more homes for wildlife. We really appreciate the students approaching us about placing these hedgehogs homes at Barber Wood as it fits in with our ethos to provide place for people and wildlife. Seeing the students engage with the woods and animals in this way is a exactly what we strive to do. ’ 

The sturdily made shelters made our of FSC recycled wood, will provide valuable habitats for hedgehogs.  

Recycled wooden pallets were repurposed for the project. The pallets were dismantled, measured and transformed into hedgehog house kits. 

Students, including George and Evan, carefully screwed the pieces together. Evan then took a step back and said ‘I made that’, while George needed no encouragement and got immediately stuck into the job. 

Other students painted the houses with coats of water-based, non-toxic fence paint to protect the houses from the elements.  

Discover more about how you can encourage hedgehogs in your neighbourhood