Swifts spend more time airborne than any other bird on earth. They sleep, drink and mate on the wing, only landing to nest. 

When they come home, they come home to us, returning to the exact nesting sites each year.

Swifts have adapted to nesting in nooks and cavities in our buildings but now their nest sites are being inadvertently blocked up by us on a national scale, through insulation and repairs. 

Durham Wildlife Trust seeks to work with others to install more swift boxes across Durham and beyond, building homes for returning swifts to occupy and creating a Durham Swift City. 

By donating to Durham Swift City you can help to buy custom-built swift boxes, which our volunteers are installing in church towers across Durham. 

Durham Swift City will begin by offering swift boxes to structures where they can be placed internally, such as church towers. These structures vary but can often accommodate 15-25 boxes, which would support a colony of swifts.

Swifts are very site loyal, returning to the same place to breed each year. It can take a few years for a nesting site to be discovered by young birds and so swift callers are installed alongside the nest boxes to encourage use.

By providing additional nesting opportunities across our patch, we hope to mitigate against nest site loss so that returning swifts can successfully nest and raise chicks. 

In addition to costs for boxes and swift callers, volunteers installing boxes require safety training and equipment for working at heights within tower structures.

The Trust hopes to expand Durham Swift City in the following ways and money raised above the target could enable this to happen:

1. Offer boxes to other buildings, such as retail premises and private homes close to where swifts already nest.
2. Develop a nest box monitoring scheme and ring new chicks.
3. Offer education and engagement to schools and groups about swifts.

Alongside donating to Durham Swift City, you can act swiftly and support swifts at home by:

• Retaining existing nest holes is the best thing you can do as swifts are very site faithful. If carrying out roof renovation or insulation during the summer, ensure that access holes are not blocked by scaffolding and that they’re retained for the future.
• Installing a swift box or two, at least five metres high, is a great way to help swifts but it can take time for the birds to find them. Playing swift calls can speed things up. If you’re thinking of buying a newly-built house, ask your builder to incorporate swift bricks.
• Help swifts find food by gardening in a wildlife-friendly way. Insects from your garden may spiral into the air and be snapped up the birds.

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