Charity thanks inmates for work to save hedgehogs

Peter Gould, a man with short grey hair and stubble. He is wearing a salmon coloured shirt underneath a light blue quarter zip jumper. He is also wearing an unzipped, black raincoat which features the Jersey prison service crest. Behind him, to the right of the image, are a series of wooden boxes on a shelf, and a mirror on the wall. To the left of the image is a palm tree, and a set of wooden shelves on which there are transparent plastic bags of kindling wood.

Image caption,

Peter Gould said it was important for prisoners to see the positive impact their vocational work had on the local community

ByLisa YoungChannel Islands

Published47 minutes ago

An animal charity has thanked prison inmates for helping to save hedgehogs' lives.

Prisoners in HMP La Moye, in St Brelade, have given Jersey Hedgehog Preservation Group 20 feeding and nesting boxes which they have made out of reclaimed pallet timber.

Peter Gould, the prison's vocational manager, said the work could help reduce reoffending because it taught inmates skills to support future employment and helped them feel they were contributing to the community.

Dru Burdon, from the hedgehog group, said: "If it helps with carpentry skills training, so much the better, these boxes are certainly saving hedgehogs' lives."

A wildlife camera has captured a black and white photo of a hedgehog sheltering in a wooden nest box as it eats or drinks from a stainless steel bowl at night. There is grass and leaves all around it and the hedgehogs eyes are illuminated by the light from the camera.

Image source, Jersey Hedgehog Preservation GroupImage caption,

Dru Burdon said the prisoners' work was saving hedgehogs' lives

Gould said the project also taught health and safety best practice and gave prisoners experience of using machinery and equipment.

"For some, the project provides a valuable introduction to skills that could lead to recognised qualifications and careers in the construction industry."

He said the project helped inmates have a "sense of purpose, achievement and connection to the community" which was "incredibly valuable".

One of the wooden nesting boxes. It has a black plastic roof and a large square entrance.

Image source, Jersey Hedgehog Preservation GroupImage caption,

The charity priced the nesting boxes at £25 and feeding boxes at £20 each

Burdon said the scheme had developed from a chance meeting with a prison officer at the vets.

She said: "He found a little hedgehog in need of care and we got talking, so the upshot was that I gave them the templates for both nesting and feeding boxes."

She said of the 20 boxes the prisoners had given the charity earlier in August, all the feeding boxes had sold out and raised £20 each and there were just a few £25 nesting boxes left.

"The response from the public and our members has been terrific," she added.

A wall with horizontal wooden panels, on which there is an A4 sign which says 'States of Jersey Prison Service working with Age Concern Jersey'. Beneath the sign are three wooden planters, each holding a green plant with purple flowers.

Image caption,

Gould said some of the vocational work supported the Age Concern Jersey charity

Gould said the hedgehog boxes formed part of a wider programme of vocational projects at the prison.

These included refurbishing bikes for donations to the Age Concern Jersey charity, restoring memorial benches, growing plants and vegetables for the prison kitchen and for charity, and helping create wildlife habitats.

"We're proud of the positive contribution prisoners can make through this work and pleased to see these projects being recognised," he added.

Follow BBC Jersey on X, external and Facebook, external. Send your story ideas to [email protected], external.