We have been established since 1997 & we work with simple aims & objectives.
Education, Conservation & Bird Welfare.
(To cater for bad weather conditions, we have an important "All Weather Centre")
The Bird's & their Sanctuary
When visiting the Centre you will see that we work with a mixture of birds that have become full time residents. all birds on display are captive bred with species varying from Owls, Hawks & Falcons. Many of our resident birds have been handed to us over time from keepers who have struggled to care for them. Some of our birds would be classed as falconry birds, this does not mean we are Falconry Centre.
Our Sanctuary operates in two ways. One section supports our resident birds & the interest of our visitors, this creates great educational experiences plus important funding to support the work of our charity.
The 2nd section supports the wild bird casualties that are brought in to us for treatment & rehabilitation. We pride ourselves on our rehabilitation work & it is always a pleasure when we are able to release wild casualties back to the wild where they belong. All wild birds are always kept off public display & away from the public, this is important because it is illegal to publically display a wild bird for commercial gain. The aim of true rehabilitation is to support the bird & to get it back to wild once it is fit & well, this must be done with minimal human interferance if it is to survive after release.
Education
This is where our resident birds play an important role. To keep our birds active, fit & people friendly we create a range of interactive activities that offers great educational support.
We have clear itineraries that can be specially tailored to suit the educational requirements of each group, not forgetting those with special needs. We have friendly staff who offer educational support to all ages.
During a school visit, children experience a great interactive Owl encounter, a visit also provides children with a great opportunity to fly some of the Owls they meet. Topics covered are British Owl species, flight, sound, habitats, diet & Owl pellets etc.
We also cater for many other groups
Children’s parties, adult groups, corporate days, AGM meetings, disabled groups & more.
For information or to make a booking for a private activity, call 01452 383999.
Conservation Work
For us, this plays an important part of our daily tasks. We have a dedicated Conservation team working to out in the field to support localised species of Owls & birds of prey. We offer advice nationally & even to those who live abroad, the local project areas we work are: Gloucestershire, South Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Wiltshire & Oxfordshire. From 1997 to 2008 we have positioned over 1200 nest boxes at projects sites to help provide places for Owls to take shelter & nest.
When visiting the Centre you make an important contribution to the work we do in support of Wild Barn Owls, other British Owl species & Birds of Prey. By generating extra revenue from our visitors we can continue to fund the many projects we have in place. In addition to a visit we are on hand to offer important advice on species identification, habitat requirements & prey species. etc. Nest Boxes are also available for sale if required. If you are looking to support your localised Owl population & Kestrels, why not set up a nest box project in your area. We are here to help.
Acquiring a Nest Box.
All our boxes are made at the Centre within our own workshop by our conservation team
Click here to view some of the Nest Boxes we have positioned at a few project sites.
Bird Welfare.
We support our resident birds, not by keeping them in their aviaries, but by training them. This creates more interaction with our keepers & over time the birds re-gain trust in people who support them. This brings the birds out of their aviaries & into the open countryside to be trained & flown with staff, & most importantly, our visitors. This is very rewarding, not just for the birds, but for all that meet them.
As a charity we work closely with the most common species people breed in captivity. This helps us to gain an important level of experience to assist with problems that occur when people buy a bird of prey as a pet without thinking about the long term commitment.
Summary:
Education on Captive Bred Issues: Awareness, rescue & rehabilitation, training & issues relating to bird welfare. All birds housed at the Centre play an important educational role to all programs.
Education on Wild Issues: Owl ecology, habitat, prey species, Owl Pellets & the importance of nest boxes. All conservation work we undertake, together with the data we collect whilst out in the field, is proving to be of great importance to both Education & Owl Conservation.
; windowHandle.focus(); "This is an aerial shot of our new home, Netheridge Farm. We moved into this 12.5 acre Farm during March 2008. Our aim is to transfer the whole Farm into an interactive Owl Conservation Centre")
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