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Latest Centre News

A 2hr Photography Experience - Weekend Evenings

29 June 2010

What a great way to spend an Evening with the camera!
The Barn Owl Centre now presents a NEW 2 hour Evening Photography Experience.

....read more

Re-locating a 6 ton Ash Tree for the Owls

6 July 2010

 

A helping hand to move a special Owl House!

 

Local tree surgeons, Ashley Beddis, Ben Andrews (pictured right) together with Sparrow Crane Hire came to the assistance of the Barn Owl Centre, the task was to move a special old pollarded Ash tree.

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Future Development Plan

Barn Owl Centre Appeal - 2010

New for Gloucestershire

Owl Conservation Centre with Bird of Prey Centre

Are you in a position to offer any help?
 
2010 is going to be an exciting year with loads going on with regards to develope the next important stages of the Barn Owl Centre, this is to happen within the background whilst being open to visitors.
 
Can we take this opportunity to ask if you can help us by donating funds or building materials to assist what is going to be a great Centre for the County of Gloucestershire. By scrolling down you can see the list of building materials we need to get the job done. Any help is a bonus to our charity, which is here to benefit Education, Conservation & most important Bird Welfare.
 
Future development plans of the Barn Owl Centre
The Barn Owl Centre moved into a derelict farm during the course of 2008. During this move we built a temporary holding Centre to accommodate the birds in our care & important facilities that as allowed us to operate the charity's business & its activities. During the Summer of 2009, we opened our doors to the public, at weekends & during School Holidays. With the temporaary Centre now operational & working well, we are now ready to commence work on the farm buildings, for this we need to gather support from the community including businesses. If you want to see the project, please give the Centre a call, we would love to show you around so you can see its potential.

The Barn Owl Centre has now settled within its new home at Netheridge Farm located in Hempsted, Gloucester. For those who are new to our organisation, we moved to this farm from a previous location in Brockworth, all happened during March 2008. The 12.5 acre farm with many outbuildings has been handed to our charity by Gloucester City Council; we have been granted a long lease for a period of 99 years with the added support of a peppercorn rent period for the first 25 years.

The farm we have moved into needs a lot of TLC, it was handed to us in a derelict state when we move in, during 2008 we had to build a new infrastucture from scratch & with very little funding, this was in the form of a temporary Centre, this was professionally constructed & is located to the side of the many derelict buildings we have future plans for. By building temporary it kept our initial moving costs down, this allowed our organisation to move to the farm much quicker. With the tightest budget & determination WE MADE IT!

With the temporary Barn Owl Centre with our new added Bird of Prey Centre now up & running & looking very presentable, we can now go forward with the knowledge of working with minimal disruption being caused during any future development of the farm buildings.

To help with the extra funding requirements, we need to look at increasing our income levels so we can meet the future expenditure that will occur.

For us to create Gloucestershire’s first Barn Owl Conservation Centre with full educational facilities, we need all the support we can get, we can do so much ourselves but we will struggle to do it all. Any offer of help & support will be a great, it will benefit not just the work of our charity, but all ages of the community who visit us & most important the wildlife we support!

For anyone wishing to become involved, please give us a call so we can show you around, a visit will enable you see the full potential of this exciting project.

Images below will help show the scale this exciting project, would you like to part of it?

Below are many other ways to offer support, also view the image gallery below by scrolling down

How to donate by Credit Card or Direct Debit

secure credit card
direct debit

CAF
Charities Aid Foundation

CAF helps to provide the donor with an secure online facility that helps to bring the Barn Owl Centre and donor together using tax-effective giving.


For business or a personal interest. Click on the CAF logo to find out more.

How to Donate by Post

If you would like to send a cheque donation, please send to the address below:

Barn Owl Centre: Netheridge Farm. Netheridge Close
Hempsted. Gloucester. GL2 5LE

Your support is very important to us as a charity - Our Charity Number is: 1097410

WISH LIST for Building Materials & Tradesmen

Can you help with any of the below
All materials of any quantity will be a great help to us. We have loads of storage space where materials can be stored for use during the development. Any unwanted materials can keep the charities cost right down as we develop the Centre to its full potential. Everything helps including the help from people within the building trade!
 
Building & Roofing Materials
6 x 7mtre RSJ's - 6"x6" - 37kg
100,000 Old Reclaimed Bricks
1000 of 4” Concrete Blocks & 1000 of 4” Thermolite Blocks
20,000 Clay Roof Tiles
1000 square metres of Reclaimed Flagstones or Paviers.
Wall, Ceiling & Roof Insulation
100 bags of Cement
72 sheets of 8”x4” - ½” Plasterboard
3 rolls of 9” damp course
20 Rolls of Roof Felt & 10 Breathable Roof Felt
 
Scoffolding Required
 
Aggregates
200 ton of Type One Stone
60 ton of Type One dust
80 ton of Washed 10mm Pea Gravel
120 ton of Gravel
20 ton of Building Sand
 
Treated or untreated Timber
1000 metres of 9”x3”
1000 metres of 8”x2”
2000 metres of 6”x2”
2500 metres of 4”x2” PSE
2000 metres of 2”x2” PSE
20 bundles of Roofing Batten
200 sheets of 18mm External Plywood
3000 metres of T&G Timber Cladding
1000 metres of 6”x1” Sawn Timber
 
Aviary Wire: 200 metres x 4ft of 2”x2” Plastic Coated Wire
 
Electrical: 3 Phase Supply, Electrical Wire, Fixtures & Fittings etc..
 
Plumbing: Toilet facities, Heating, Pipework, Fixtures & Fittings etc...
 
Miscellaneous Trades
Damp Coursing, Plasterer/Dry Liner, Bricklayer, Carpenter, Electrician, Plumber & Fencer
 
Fencing
500 Round Stakes
600 metres of Stock Proof Fencing
500 metres of Half Round Rails
 
Plant Machinery/Vehicles
JCB or 8 ton excavator, dumper truck & twin vibration roller
A pick up truck or the kind use of one to collect materials

Project Image Gallery

Netheridge Farm 2007 prior to us moving inProposed 3D front elevation showing Entrance ViewProposed 3D design showing inner courtyard with seating areas
Proposed 3D Plan showing view at rear leading to Exit & Educational BuildingPlan for new aviaries to include rehabilitation aviaries for wild casualtiesProposed Plans 2009 showing new aviaries & Education/Conservation CentreTemporary Aviaries at NiightSize of New Barn Owl Centre
Location of Barn Owl CentreExisting Summer 2008Spring 2008. How the paths are looking within 5 monthsCreating paths through 12.5 acres of land for reserveSpring 2008. Training area for our birds with seating
New Temporary AviariesNew temporary aviary areaNow cleaned up to house temporary aviary areaAfter - Temporary Indoor flying areaBefore - Temporary Indoor flying area

t

 

 

Clyde's first photo taken 22/7/2009

The arrival of a Gyr Saker Falcon

22 July 2009

 

 

GYR x SAKER FALCON - A NEW ARRIVAL TO OUR NEW BIRD OF PREY CENTRE

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Bonnie

Arrival of a Lanner Falcon

22 July 2009

LANNER FALCON - A NEW ARRIVAL TO OUR NEW BIRD OF PREY CENTRE

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Snowy Owl named Sweeny

Arrival of a Snowy Owl

27 June 2009

SNOWY OWL - A NEW ARRIVAL TO OUR NEW BIRD OF PREY CENTRE

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THE GOLDEN EAGLE HAS LANDED

8 May 2009

THE MAJESTIC GOLDEN EAGLE - A NEW ARRIVAL TO OUR DISPLAY TEAM!

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THE FALCON HAS LANDED

1 May 2009

The arrival of a SAKER X GYR X PEREGRINE FALCON

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Wild Tawny Owlets brought into Care 2009

17 April 2009

Wild Tawny Owl Orphans

Arrived: Friday 17th April 2009 at 5.30pm

This is about the time of year when we get handed a number of young Owlets. Here is Juliette who we call mother hen with 2 new Tawny Owlets aged at about 2 to 3 weeks.

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The appearance of an Eagle Owl

27 October 2008

Wild Bred or a Captive Bred Escapee?

This is not one of the Centre's European Eagle Owls! As anyone out there lost one?

During the evening of the 24th August 2008 we were alerted by what looked to be the shape & size of a fox looking into one of our Eagle Owl aviaries. We zoomed one of the security cameras in to discover that this was not a fox but a loose European Eagle Owl. When observed we could see that the Owl was walking around the outside of our Eagle Owl aviaries to try & get in, first impressions were 'WOW' where the heck did he come from!

On entering the aviary area to get a closer look we did manage to get within 10ft of him before he took flight into the darkness. This us left standing opened mouthed, it seemed quite funny really especially if someone could of seen the look on our faces & the Eagle Owls.

The Eagle Owl soon appeared again in the trees that bordered the aviary area, we watched with amazement with many thoughts entering our heads to where it had escaped from. The one thing we did notice was when we got within 10ft, the Owl wasn't wearing any anklets or jesses. The feathering around the Owls legs were untouched & natural looking, there were no signs of leg wear from leather anklets, these are normally worn by captive bred Owls. The question that is unanswered is this: Is he a wild bred Eagle Owl or a captive bred escapee; this is something we will never know especially as there have been no know reports of anyone loosing an Eagle Owl in the County.


With the aviary area at the Centre being well lit in the evenings we managed to monitor the Eagle Owl's movements for days, this followed by then weeks & then months. The Eagle Owl appeared at irregular times both day & night & at times visitors also managed to get a glimpse of this amazing Owl.

Close to bonfire night & with the start of the fireworks, the Eagle Owl soon disappeared & hasn't been seen since around the Centre.

A question now pops up more or less every day between staff, I wonder where he is or I hope is OK out there.


To be realistic, on one hand it was good to have him about but on the other hand we did fear the effect he could have on the birds we keep here & fly at our Centre, he did concern us especially as they are capable of taking out a local Owl population including Barn Owls.

With regards to local wildlife, we did loose sight & sound of local wild Tawny Owls & Barn Owls, this was not good news for a Barn Owl Centre. The good news is the wild Tawny Owls are calling again & the Barn Owls are back hunting over our fields.

Life here at the Centre is now got back to some normality now the Eagle Owl as moved on. Will he return, nobody knows.
 


For further sightings visit Mike King's web site THE GLOSTER BIRDER

Updated 24th December 2008
Further reports are still coming in where an Eagle Owl has been seen at locations within a 5 mile radius of the Barn Owl Centre


Images below were taken during the Eagle Owls stay at the Barn Owl Centre.

....read more

New Arrival to the Centre

9 August 2008

Ashley, the Black Barn Owl

On Friday 8th August 2008, a very special Black Barn Owl called Ashley arrived at the Barn Owl Centre.

History in brief. Ashley's is a male bird who hatched in May 2008, he was bred in captivity & he still retains the same latin name as the white Common Barn Owl (Tyto alba).

Come & meet him. By visiting the Centre, you will be able to learn more about him & his history plus you will be able to meet him up close.

Ashley's future here at the Centre. Ashley will be placed into a full training program so he can be specially trained to join our flying team of birds

Further updates will be added over time showing Ashley's progress as he settles in.

Description & History

Ashley is a melanistic Barn Owl. Still the same species of the Tyto Albi.
Meaning of melanistic: An increased amount of black or nearly black pigmentation of an organism, resulting from the presence of melanin. It is the opposite of albino, which occurs due to lack of melanin.

Ashley originated from a wild breeding pair of white Barn Owls, (Tyto Alba) within Europe, the story we have heard is a European white pair (wild) raised a brood of black young & from there they somehow ended up in captivity with European breeders. Over the years they have spread between breeders with them now making their way into the UK, we are learning that a few breeding pairs are in the UK & this is one of the young from one pair.

....read more

Nest /Roost Boxes for Owls this Winter

19 November 2006

Creating accommodation for wild Barn Owls, Tawny Owls & Little Owls

With winter now upon us why not offer a bit of support to your local Owl population, Winter is a tough time for all Owls.

Whilst the autumn leaves fall, trees become bare leaving very little areas for Owls to take shelter during driving rain, wind & the cold. 

....read more

The arrival of a white Little Owl Orphan

23 June 2006

A Wild young Little Owl was brought in on the 23rd June 2006 & on seeing this youngster we were taken aback by its colour & facial difference to a normal youngster.

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New Mobile Cam being testing

21 June 2006

To make the web site of the Barn Owl Centre more interactive we will hopefully soon be embedding a new pan & tilt cam into a new web cam page.

....read more

Barn Owl Population Increase for Gloucestershire

28 March 2006

Press Release in support of the 2006 breeding season

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Barn Owl Centre Documentary

7 March 2006

The Barn Owl Centre are please to provide web viewers & supporters with a televised recording of a programme called "Heart of the Country" This outlinings just some of the problems we as a charity have to deal with regarding the captive breeding of Barn Owls as Pets, in addition there is an insight into the directors personal history, which follows on to how & why he formed the Charity.

....read more

Rescued Little Owl

6 July 2004

OWL SLICK!

Article in our local Newspaper "The Citizen"

10:30 - 06 June 2003

This oily owl is lucky to be alive today after plopping into an oil drum at a Gloucestershire based scrapyard.

....read more

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 © Copyright 2001-2010 The Barn Owl Centre. Website by •mint
The Barn Owl Centre is a Registered Charity. No:1097410 

A CENTRE DEDICATED TO COMMUNITY EDUCATION, CONSERVATION & BIRD WELFARE
The Barn Owl Centre: Netheridge Farm, Netheridge Close, Hempsted, Gloucester. GL2 5LE Tel: 01452 383999
A Company Limited by Guarantee. Registered in England. Certificate of Incorporation 4147016

Registered as a Zoo. Licence No: 1/2002