Interior of a church looking into chancel

Largest Bats in Churches capital works project kicks off in West Sussex

This 11th Century, Grade I listed church in West Sussex has lived with its resident colony of Natterer’s bats for several decades. Now a £100k Bats in Churches funded project has kicked off to enable the congregation and bats to live together without disturbing one another.

A brown long eared bat flying in front of gravestone

A world beyond our earshot: how we can identify bats in churches using sound

Volunteers for the National Bats in Churches survey use bat detectors to record sounds to help us ID bats in churches. But what happens next, and how can we tell which species is which? Welcome to the world beyond our earshot.

A brown long eared bat flying in front of a church

15 churches and counting! Bats in Churches volunteers Phil and Ilene on their batty summer

Volunteers Phil Atkin and Ilene Sterns have so far surveyed 15 churches for the National Bats in Churches survey. Here, Ilene shares some of their experiences and highlights, as well as her thoughts on what makes volunteering so rewarding.

A photo showing the gaps under slate roof tiles at St Margaret's Harwood Dale

Surprises in store at St Margaret’s Harwood Dale

It’s important we survey churches that don’t have bats, as well as those that do. But what about those that don’t think they have bats? As Bats in Churches Study volunteer Nick Gibbons discovered when he surveyed St Margaret’s Church in Harwood Dale, historic churches are full of surprises.

A young woman using a mobile phone to take a photo of the inside of a church

Call for volunteers to survey the nation’s churches for bats this summer!

Bats in Churches is appealing for volunteers to come forward and help search for evidence of bats in their local church this summer. Here’s why we need your help – and some of the surprising and exciting results we’ve discovered so far.

Claire Boothby taking part in the Bats in Churches volunteer survey by collecting droppings from a scatter on a wooden surface

July 2020 Update: Getting the ball rolling again

The latest news from Bats in Churches as the project faces the challenges posed by the pandemic head-on and prepares for a season of bat mitigation works in project churches.

A small, greyish bat with noticably long ears, hanging from a stone wall facing the camera

Rare bat discovered by our survey volunteers

A rare grey long-eared bat has been discovered at a church in Devon, much to the excitement of Bats in Churches volunteers and partners. So why is this such an important find?

A medieval painting showing St Andrew holding a cross, the painting had red and black pigment showing against a white wall

Re-opening guidance for churches post-lockdown

There are a lot of new rules and regulations on keeping your church building safe while re-opening it during the coronavirus pandemic. Here’s some advice and tips that might help, from cleaning guidance to preparing for social distancing.

Aerial view of church with steeple, with churchyard, houses and far views

Bats in the Belfry

Bats in Churches training and survey officer Claire Boothby introduces the project, its aims, the challenges, and shares some of the questions we’re hoping to answer.

Two women with cleaning equipment standing outside church door

February 2020 Update: Full steam ahead for the Bats in Churches project

The latest news from Bats in Churches including early wakeups from hibernation (back to sleep with you!), stained-glass bats and new churches joining the project.