A six-metre common swift tower has been installed at County Hall in Usk as part of the Gwent Green Grid Shared Prosperity Funding for enhancing Green Spaces.

The tower, which includes bird boxes for up to 12 pairs of swifts, has been installed at the Incredible Edible community garden.

The tower aims to support the local swift population, which is on the Red List of Conservation Concern, and to raise awareness of how Monmouthshire County Council is supporting nature recovery across the county.

The tower will:

• Provide additional nesting spaces for swifts and other urban nature, to help address the long-term loss of traditional nest sites in buildings.
• Provide a prominent piece of art to inform residents and visitors to the Incredible Edible Community Garden of this iconic, declining urban bird, and to inspire individuals to take action to help swifts and other urban nature.

Swifts have recently been put on the Red List of Birds of Conservation Concern in recognition that populations across the UK have declined by 58% since 1995, 75% in Wales.

Swifts nest almost exclusively in buildings, making use of small holes to raise their young. Swifts pair for life, returning to the same nest site each year.

However, with many old buildings being renovated, small holes being filled, or buildings simply demolished, our swifts are losing their nesting sites. To help these birds, their nesting sites should be retained during renovations, provided artificially in the form of swift boxes or in the form of a Swift Tower.

Monmouthshire County Council (MCC) has produced a Local Nature Recovery Action Plan, which sets out actions to help reverse the decline in biodiversity and build ecosystem resilience, support nature recovery and deliver nature-based opportunities to raise awareness.

Cabinet Member for Climate Change and the Environment, Cllr Catrin Maby, said: “Swifts are on the red list due to declining numbers and so it is vital that we do what we can to support them.

“This swift tower is an excellent way to ensure that we continue to see breeding pairs at County Hall for many years to come. Hopefully it can prove to be a small step towards the recovery of swift populations in the near future.”

Monmouthshire County Council hopes to support further swift project work through the Welsh Government Local Places for Nature funding during 2025-2027. If you would like to find out more or get involved, please email LocalNature@Monmouthshire.gov.uk

(Picture – Will Nash)