What we offer…
The Feather Speech Consultancy CIC is here to impartially consult home builders about swift bricks: integral nest boxes that are cheap, simple to install and a vital conservation measure, for swifts and other red-listed, cavity-nesting, urban birds. We give talks and presentations online and in person, and consult with homebuilders, housing association and local planning authorities, about how swift bricks will enhance nature capital and significantly help stabilise the populations of these birds.
Our aim…
Raise awareness and secure safe homes for swifts as quickly as possible, on a national scale, creating a safeguarding legacy for both these iconic birds, and the nature connection swift bricks provide homeowners.
Directors
Hannah Bourne-Taylor
Hannah is a bird conservationist and the creator or The Feather Speech Campaign.
Will Dennis
Sustainability Expert (Group Head of Sustainability, The Bamford Collection)
Testimonials
“Zac Goldsmith”
‘Hannah Bourne-Taylor is simply formidable. She has single-handedly made what for many people appears to be a niche concern into a national campaign. She has turned the need for swift bricks into a national cause.’
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
— Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park, Former Environment Minister, Speaking in the House of Lords
“Thakeham”
‘The Feather Speech Consultancy CIC has set us on a journey of discovery. As a housebuilder, Thakeham recognise the opportunity we have to support nature recovery through the landscape-led masterplanning, but also within the homes we build. With the support of The Feather Speech Consultancy CIC we can truly understand our part in the recovery of swifts and other red-list species.’
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
— Josie Cadwallader-Hughes, Sustainability Director, Thakeham
“Beccy Speight“
‘Hannah Bourne–Taylor is a force for nature. Her energy, determination, expertise and creative approach to campaigning has helped raise awareness of the plight of this iconic species.’
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
— CEO RSPB
WHY ARE SWIFT BRICKS ESSENTIAL?
Swift bricks are unique in their necessity as a conservation measure in new builds because without them, there is no safe, permanent nesting habitat for swifts in Britain.
Swift bricks need to be urgently installed on a national scale in Britian because natural nesting sites – the nooks and crannies in our walls and rooves, are being inadvertently blocked off by us on an unprecedented and national scale.
The British Trust for Ornithology states that between 1995-2020, the breeding population of swifts declined by 60% leaving only 59,000 pairs. Swifts were added to the red list of highest conservation concern in 2021, a term defined by the need for ‘urgent action,’ and swift bricks provide nesting habitat for not only swifts, but 3 other red listed cavity nesting species and other small urban birds AKA our closest wild neighbours.
ROOTS OF OUR CIC
The Feather Speech Consultancy CIC is the natural progression of The Feather Speech – the national conservation campaign launched by Hannah in November 2022. At the core of the campaign there was a government petition seeking a national planning policy on swift bricks.
Government petitions stay open for only 6 months and require 100,000 signatures to be granted a parliamentary debate so to spark a national conversation, Hannah opened the campaign and petition in London, by delivering a speech at Speaker’s Corner, and then walking through central London to Downing Street, unclothed, painted from neck to toe in inked feathers. Covered nationally and internationally in print and television, the petition became the fastest growing government petition and by its close had the support of 109,895 people, supported by the RSPB, Rewriting Extinction, Wild Justice and Wildlife and Countryside Link. 12 cross-party MPs stood unanimously united for birds in the petition debate and former Environment Minister, and Life Peer, Zac Goldsmith, championed the cause in the House of Lords and remains committed to securing a national policy. But there is no time to lose. Even with a national policy, swift bricks need to be being installed right now and so Will and Hannah are committed to work with homebuilders to get as many swift bricks in new builds as quickly as possible.
Contact Us
If you would like to speak to us about the potential to work with your organisation…