Conservation and wildlife events

Together with Natural Basingstoke, we are running a campaign to support the borough’s hedgehogs which are in decline and identified as a priority species in our biodiversity strategy. We are relaunching the campaign during Hedgehog Awareness Week 2026, between 4 and 10 May. Keep an eye out on this page for future event updates.

Hedgehogs have been designated as ‘near threatened’ on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s red list, reflecting a population decrease of no less than 30 per cent over the past decade. In response, the National Hedgehog Conservation Strategy has been formed to address critical threats and work toward reversing the species’ decline in the United Kingdom.

There’s plenty we can all do to support this effort from reporting hedgehog sightings to learning how to make a hedgehog house, feed a hedgehog and make a hedgehog highway. Visit Natural Basingstoke website for more information.

For tips and ideas on how you can support nature and adapt your garden to help hedgehogs and other wildlife, get in touch with our Green Team to book a free garden survey

We are collecting images of hedgehog poo that you may have found in your garden or within your local community. You can help by reporting a hedgehog poo sighting.

Report hedgehog poo sighting

Hedgehog poo is typically dark brown or black, sausage-shaped, and ranges from 1.5cm to 5cm long. It is often slightly shiny due to the insect remains like beetle shells or worm casings that they eat. Droppings are usually firm, tapered at one or both ends, and left singly rather than in piles. You'll often find them on lawns, paths, or near feeding stations at night, as hedgehogs are nocturnal.

Our campaign draws on themes of the national Great British Spring Clean run by Keep Britain Tidy focusing on what we can all do to promote pride in our borough.

The initial campaign which launched on the 19 February and ran until the 2 March featured a programme of litter picks and events to tidy up important areas in our communities. We will be looking to relaunch the campaign in the new year, with a series of litter picking events. We will be supporting organisations to get involved where possible.

If you are interesting in getting involved or would like more information, visit our campaign page or email Keepbdclean@basingstoke.gov.uk

An annual week-long celebration of parks and green spaces, recognising their importance to local people, the hard work that goes in to maintaining and protecting them and celebrating community involvement. The campaign is run by Keep Britain Tidy, who are responsible for the Green Flag Award and The Great British Spring Clean.

Each year, a programme of free and low-cost activities in July offers people of all ages a wide variety of ways to play, explore, exercise and relax in the borough’s green spaces. The success of the campaign would not be possible without the support of partner organisations who deliver activities alongside the council during Love Parks Week. Numerous community groups and volunteers help run and support events across the borough’s open spaces as part of the campaign.

Love parks week ran from 25 July to 1 August 2025.

Keep an eye on this page for further updates and events.

About BioBlitz

We organise a BioBlitz annually, together with local wildlife organisations and nature groups. The aim is to get a snapshot of the life found in a specific location by identifying as many plant, animal and fungi species as possible over a 24-hour period. A BioBlitz can be carried out anywhere there is wildlife, and it is a fun, informal way for people of all ages to learn alongside experts and share and develop their enthusiasm for nature.

Keep an eye out on this page for future event updates. Or email WildlifeConservation@basingstoke.gov.uk.

Loddon Rivers Week is coordinated by the Loddon Catchment Partnership and South East Rivers Trust. It is a week-long campaign at the end of September, full of hands-on activities and events to encourage local residents to find out more about the River Loddon, how it is managed and the wildlife that lives there. The week encompasses World Rivers Day; a celebration of the world's waterways. It highlights the many values of rivers and strives to increase public awareness and encourages the improved stewardship of rivers around the world.

World Rivers Day took place on the 28 September 2025.