Hope for the Future – Working to Save our Swift Population

Thursday 18th September 2025

This month we mark the Season of Creation, an annual campaign running from 1 September to 4 October, during which time we are encouraged to reflect, pray, and take practical action towards being responsible and loving stewards of God’s creation.

We also continue to celebrate the Holy Year of Jubilee, and the Season of Creation this year coincides with our Jubilee for the Environment, an invitation for us to renew and restore our relationship with our common home and our Creator.

As we explore the different ways our parishes can take action to respond to this call, we take a closer look at one parish that has taken decisive action in recent years to contribute to conservation efforts and to promote biodiversity in their area.

Read on to find out about their hard work and determination, and the fantastic results they have achieved so far with the help of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).

A Success Story: Swifts Nesting at St Wilfrid’s

This summer has seen some exciting updates coming from St Wilfrid’s Church in Longridge, as an RSPB-supported project aimed at conserving the population of swifts in the UK has proven to be a great success for the fourth year running.

The hopeful initiative was spearheaded by Joe Howson, Director at Lee House Mission Awareness Centre, alongside Conservation Advisors for the RSPB. It involved the installation of 12 swift boxes specially designed for nesting in the belfry tower at St Wilfrid’s back in 2021.

According to RSPB ecologists, at least fourteen chicks have hatched across 10 of the boxes this summer, and there is evidence of further nesting activity which is a positive indicator for continued progress in seasons to come.

A collaborative effort between Howson and several of the RSPB team, the project was conceived as a way to improve biodiversity in the parish, with the focus turning to the swift population due to their position on the Red List of conservation concern. The number of swifts in the UK declined by a staggering 62% between 1995 and 2021, which makes the number of birds now nesting in the belfry all the more significant.

Outcomes: Feedback from the Parish

According to Howson, parishioners have taken great pleasure in welcoming the new inhabitants at St Wilfrid’s, and he said he frequently receives messages of excitement as people report their sightings of the birds in the area. People around the parish are kept updated on the birds’ progress whilst they are nesting, and are encouraged to go and visit the church to catch a glimpse of them coming and going. “Just look up,” implored Howson, “and you get to see these amazing birds.”

Discussing the positive impact that an initiative like this one can have on an area, Howson recalled the “amazement and joy” that came in that first summer when the boxes were occupied, as it can take three to four years for them to be inhabited at first. “The idea that we can use our buildings towards these efforts is fantastic,” Howson said, “it’s a win-win project for the parish and the environment.”

Plan of Action: Making it Happen

For such a unique project to take shape, there were many important details to consider – not least the sanctity and historic importance of our places of worship. With the support of parish priest Fr Anthony Dutton, Howson and his counterparts in the RSPB sought approval from both the diocese and Historic Churches Committee before anything could be installed in the belfry tower.

The specialist design of the boxes (made by skilled volunteer Len Riley, a retired engineer) allowed them to be pressure mounted, which meant that there was no need to drill or alter the fabric of the building – which is Grade II listed – in any way. Riley’s design also includes a fascinating feature which mimics the swift’s call and entices them to nest, so every aspect is custom built to ensure an ideal habitat for these amazing birds. The materials for all 12 boxes were funded by a local conservation group, Bolton and Bury Swifts, whose work focuses on helping to reverse the decline in the population of swifts and house martins in Greater Manchester.

“Just look up…”

Hilary McGuire, Conservation Advisor for the RPSB, described the great amount of time and effort that goes into getting projects like this one off the ground, as well as the ongoing work involved in monitoring and maintaining the boxes. But, as McGuire attests, “the end result of little swiftlets winging their way south each August makes it well worth the effort!”

What can you and your parish do?

If you have been inspired by the fantastic work over at St Wilfrid’s, you may wish to investigate the possibility of implementing a similar project within your parish.

To find out more or to discuss the different options available to your parish, please contact our environment team as a first port of call by emailing laudatosi@dioceseofsalford.org.uk.

 

 

Tagged | Environment | Parishes