The woods remember…but what happens next?

When Jane and Hugh Kemp began planting Christmas trees in the Yorkshire Dales in the 1960s, they had no idea what would one day arrive.

Twenty-five years later, red squirrels appeared in the conifers – unexpected, unmistakable, and somehow, they stayed.

What followed was decades of quiet stewardship. A woodland shaped not just by planting, but by care.

Now, that woodland is for sale.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgmexkw8923o

It’s a place where reds have survived – not by chance, but through patience, protection, and a deep respect for the land. A living example of what’s possible when habitat is protected and allowed to thrive.

And now, like so many fragile pockets across the UK, its future depends entirely on who takes it on next.

We’ve been talking a lot about habitat – not just numbers, not just policy, but the real places where red squirrels live or disappear.

This story brings that into sharp focus.

With Save Our Reds Day on Friday 15th May, it feels like the right moment to ask a bigger question.

If there were a way to help secure places like this – not just one woodland, but important red squirrel habitats across the UK – should we explore it?

Not a pledge. Not a fundraising drive (yet).

Just a question…and a conversation.

If you have a moment, I’d really value your thoughts here:
Save Our Reds Survey

Also, lovely to see red squirrels featured in this week’s Country Life – and encouraging to see our first ever Save Our Reds Day on 15 May recognised too.

Because the woods remember what we protect.

The question is…what do we choose to protect next?