Wildwood team wins 2026 Great British Wildlife Restoration award
7th Feb 2026
Wildwood team recognised for water vole project
Wildwood Kent has been at the forefront of water vole conservation and breeding for over 20 years, releasing around 2000 water voles and playing a key role in restoring water vole populations across the UK.
Now this important work in improving biodiversity has been recognised with the 2026 Great British Wildlife Restoration Award, and we couldn’t be prouder!
Award draws MPs’ attention to nature depletion
The award is organised by BIAZA (British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums) to shine a spotlight on some of the work taking place to tackle the drastic decline of native species, and to urge politicians to act now for nature.
Members of Parliament themselves decided the winner, from a shortlist of 26 native species projects across Great Britain.
The award was presented to members of our team on 22 January at a special ceremony at Speaker’s House, but this is truly a team effort and a great example of collaboration with partner organisations!
Surrey water vole release showcases collaboration
Last July, Wildwood played a key role in the historic return of water voles to Surrey, where the species had been absent for decades.
As one of the UK’s leading conservation breeding centres, we bred around 50 water voles, which were released into the Upper Hogsmill River and the newly restored Chamber Meads wetland in Epsom & Ewell. Delivered in partnership with fellow rewilding organisation Citizen Zoo, the project followed years of groundwork by South East Rivers Trust to create the healthy wetland habitat water voles need to thrive.
The water voles’ return marks a major milestone for local biodiversity. The released water voles are being monitoring by Citizen Zoo and early indications are very positive. We suspect there are youngsters, though we won’t know for sure until Spring 2026.
The incredible team behind our success
From our conservation officers to our amazing volunteers and donors, this award wouldn’t be possible without a team of people committed to wildlife restoration.
Special mention goes to Daisy Hinton and Tom Oldacre, our young conservation keepers who care for the water voles every day in all weathers, pair them up for breeding and make sure they are fit and healthy for their release. Winning a national award on their first conservation project doesn’t happen every day!
A big shout out too to conservation officer Tyrone Capel, who oversees the water vole project, and to the Wildwood volunteers who support our water vole and other conservation work daily, and of course to our amazing donors.
A conservation team dedicated to rewilding
Every one of the Wildwood Kent conservation team has played a part in this success: Conservations officers Hazel Ryan and Suzanne Kynaston, Rewilding officer Don Wright, director of conservation Pete Burgess, chough project coordinator Liz Corry and chough release assistant Mary Brooks.
The team are currently running projects with red squirrels, pine martens, beavers and many more species - including 12 active native species reintroduction projects. The plan is to increase to nearly 20 by the end of the year, including another water vole release.Â
The expertise we’ve built over the past 20 years will also benefit other water vole projects around the country. Rewilding through the reintroduction of keystone species is the most powerful tool we have to combat nature depletion, and we are very proud to play our part in this vital work.
