Greater Manchester Swift Champion (Various Roles)

The RSPB is launching a Greater Manchester Swift Champion network. Join us and take action to ensure these amazing birds stay in our town and city skies forever. There are lots of ways to get involved, both in-person and remotely, no matter what level of knowledge you have.

Why we need you
Every spring, Swifts return to our towns and cities after travelling thousands of miles from Africa where they spend the winter. These small birds with scythe-shaped wings have total mastery of the skies. They feed, drink, mate and sleep whilst flying, only landing to nest and raise chicks.

They prefer to build their nests in buildings across our towns and cities, but over time there have become fewer places they can use and their numbers in the UK are down by over half. They are in trouble and the distinctive cries of Swifts that once filled the skies in summer are dwindling.

Urgent action is needed to stop them disappearing from our skies, so we are building a network of Swift Champions across Greater Manchester to raise awareness of and take direct action for Swifts.
 

Who are we looking for?
We are currently recruiting for three Swift Champion roles; Casework/Planning Volunteers, Monitoring Volunteers and Community Engagement Volunteers. Please see below for more details about each:

As a Caseworker, you will be:

• Checking local planning applications for building projects (e.g. new housing, urban redevelopment schemes, new public buildings) that could offer opportunities to incorporate nesting spaces (or internal nest boxes) for Swifts or other urban birds.
• You will then respond positively to consultations, encouraging the local planning authority to press for the inclusion of these enhancements in the process of granting permission.
• Looking for opportunities to provide new or enhanced green spaces to benefit Swifts and other urban nature.
• If possible, we also want people who can act as a local source of expertise and guidance for anyone concerned about the potential loss of swift nest sites through building redevelopment and renovations.

As a Monitoring volunteer, you will be helping us to understand how Swifts are doing across Greater Manchester and provide crucial evidence for the protection of existing colonies and the creation of new nest sites. Tasks will include:

• Reporting Swift sightings in communities across Greater Manchester using Swift Mapper and supporting others to do the same.
• Where Swifts have been recorded, conducting more in-depth surveys to determine whether potential nesting sites are occupied following a standard method.

As a Community engagement volunteer, you will play an important role in raising awareness and bringing communities together in support of Swifts and other urban wildlife. There are many ways you can support Swifts in your community, and you can choose to do whichever actions that you are comfortable doing. Options include but are not limited to:

• Working with communities to facilitate nesting opportunities at scale through ‘Swift Streets’
• Organising and delivering Swift walks, talks and workshops with community groups
• Appearing at local events to talk about Swifts
• Building Swift nest boxes
• Publicising swifts via online media and in local news, magazines etc.
• Creating engaging activities for all age groups

What will you get out of it?

• By becoming a Swift Champion, you will join a network of people with an interest in helping wildlife thrive in their local communities in the Greater Manchester area, meeting new people and making new friends.
• Make a real contribution to helping one of our best loved but least well understood birds.
• You will get the chance to develop role specific skills as well as other areas you are interested in learning.
• You will gain experience of working for a conservation charity and make a real difference to the conservation of one of our most special birds.
• Training and ongoing support will be provided. There will also be opportunities to get involved in other RSPB work in the area should you wish.

This is an exciting new initiative that will make a difference for Swifts across the Greater Manchester area. If you want to play a key role in making this happen, we would love to hear from you!
 

Please register your interest below to receive the links to our online application form.