House martins are social birds and like to live in colonies.
Colonies across our landscape are important for their success and in stabilising populations; they provide nesting sites for breeding birds to return each year, enable juveniles to learn behaviours, and provide young birds with opportunities to pair up with a mate.
Although numerous colonies sadly have been lost along with their declining population in the UK and Ireland, there are still many established and successful colonies where house martins are welcomed each year, their nest sites are respected and protected by the building owners all year round, and where house martins are allowed to thrive.
We want to acknowledge and celebrate these house martin havens, by inviting businesses, public houses, and residential streets to have haven membership within our charity, and receive an accreditation for welcoming and protecting house martins; as these safe breeding places are vital to their conservation.
Our house martin haven members receive an official certificate accrediting them with haven status which can be displayed in a prominent place in their building or near the nest site.
The certificate explains that havens are a safe and welcoming home for house martins to breed each year, and with their red listed status and risk of extinction in the UK, that havens are essential to their conservation.
We hope that the certificates and accreditations will create awareness about house martins to visitors at the haven locations.
Every person should be able to share in the joy of marvelling at house martins in agile flight in our skies, seeing their nests made of mud, hearing their chattering antics, and observing parents at their nest feeding young chicks as they beg for food. We are delighted to be able to showcase some of the house martin havens across the UK and Ireland, where people can see nesting house martins and share in the delight of these special birds.
If you know of a public building, business building, or residential street that has multiple nests and where house martins are welcomed each year, and where the birds and their nests are protected and respected during the breeding season and whilst the birds are overwintering in Africa, you can nominate them through the contact button below!
This initiative is still in it’s early days so only those regions where we have signed up haven members who have consented to being published on our website are currently showing.
The more we hear about new potential haven sites, the more accreditations we can issue and add new locations and regions to the page.
Holcombe Moor Training Centre
Colonal Eric Davidson Way, Hawkshaw, Bury, BL8 4JJ
Ampleforth Abbey
Ampleforth, York, YO62 4EN
National Trust Croome
High Green, Worcester, Worcestershire, WR8 9DW
Caerhays Castle & Gardens
Gorran, St Austell, Cornwall, PL26 6LY
The Chequers
The Broadway, Lamberhurst, Kent, TN3 8BD
Ludgrove School
Ludgrove, Wokingham, Berskire, RG40 3AB
Plumpton College
Ditchling Road, Lewes, BN7 3AE
Lordington Park
Lordington, Chichester, West Sussex, PO18 9DX
