Working closely with Barratt Homes and RSPB, British manufacturing company Manthorpe Building Products Ltd has designed a new swift brick which means new homes can offer a safe, habitable space for swifts that can be easily incorporated into the construction process.
With swift numbers and nesting sites in decline Europe’s biggest nature conservation charity, the UK’s biggest house builder and Manthorpe Building Products Ltd have collaborated to create a new swift nest box in a brick format which can easily be fitted in any new home.
The first new swift nest boxes have been fitted at the Kingsbrook development in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, where Barratt Homes is creating over 300 acres of wildlife-rich open space and nature parks. In total Barratt will be installing up to 900 of the swift boxes in new homes at Kingsbrook.
Swift population numbers falling and there are now less than 90,000 breeding pairs arriving in the UK, down from almost 150,000 pairs just two decades ago. Part of this decline is being linked to a reduction in potential nesting sites.
Providing more nesting sites for swifts has been one of the aims of the partnership between RSPB and Barratt Homes, which launched in 2014. The partnership commissioned UK manufacturing company Manthorpe to develop a new swift nest box that could be easily installed during construction.
Michael Finn, Group Design and Technical Director at Barratt Developments, commented: “The bricks are an industry first – they are fully drained, ventilated and are unobtrusive, by matching the colour of the bricks. They also help nurture chicks by giving them room to stand when they hatch. Crucially too, they are much, much cheaper than any other swift brick on the market, which will help their uptake. We actively want other developers to use the brick so we can all help build swift populations. It’s a great example of how we are working together with the RSPB and the wider industry to support nature.”
Darren Moorcroft at RSPB’s head of species and habitats 
conservation said: “Sadly like many UK species the swift is in trouble, their numbers have dropped dramatically, putting them at risk of disappearing completely from the UK.
“We are working hard to reverse this decline. In previous centuries builders would often create spaces for swifts, but these techniques have fallen out of practice with modern homes. Our partnership with Barratt Homes has allowed us to share ideas and look at how we can bring this practice back in a way that works for builders, home owners and the swifts.”
Gareth Wright, Sales Director at Manthorpe Building Products Ltd said: “Manthorpe Building Products has previously worked with Barratt Homes and has developed several products that can help both Barratt Homes, and other house builders achieve their requirements. Therefore we were delighted to be approached by Barratt Homes and RSPB regarding the development of a potential new product which could be used by house builders to provide a home for Swifts.”
The first phase of the development, Oakfield Village, will see Barratt build around 500 homes, ranging in size from 2-5 bedrooms, and are on sale now. Of these, around 180 homes will feature the new swift boxes. Overall Barratt will be building 2,450 new homes at Kingsbrook, together with providing land and financial contributions for 3 new schools, building new community facilities and creating a host of new jobs.
Dick Newell of Action for Swifts added: “If we are to compensate the loss of thousands of Swift nesting places every year due to insulation and roof repairs, we need to deploy thousands of nest boxes. A product like this is a great step forward in making this happen.”
