Howick is one of the few places left in the UK where we still have red
squirrels, a native largely driven out by the grey squirrel elsewhere. You
may see one anywhere in the wooded areas of the garden or arboretum or on
the feeder outside the tearoom window.
Save our Squirrels, a Red Alert North England project, is currently the biggest
single-species conservation project in the UK. Managed and directed by Northumberland
Wildlife Trust, we have a budget of £1.15 million (half of which comes from the
Heritage Lottery Fund) to provide red squirrel conservation and education activities
through our team of 7 dedicated squirrel officers. Central to the success of the
project is the creation and protection of 16 Red Squirrel Reserves in Northumberland,
Cumbria and Lancashire: our activities are focused on the North of England as this is
the last stronghold of the red squirrel in England, being home to approximately 80% of
the remaining English population. However we also work closely with red squirrel
conservation officers and organisations in the rest of the UK – particularly the South
of Scotland – to ensure the continued survival of this engaging little animal in the UK.
Save our Squirrels Project is monitoring the distribution of squirrels in the North of England.
This information also allows vital scientific research. You can help us by downloading this
monitoring form and recording all the squirrels that you see, then returning the form via one of
the methods shown.
