News

The front cover of The Little Church Bat, showing an illustration of a bat flying over a church

Meet The Little Church Bat!

16th June 2022

Bats in Churches has published its first ever children’s book based on the true story of one of our project churches. Meet Mo, The Little Church Bat!

Bats in Churches engagement officer Rose at the Braunston May Fayre

The Little Church Bat raises nearly £250 for Bats in Churches pilot project

4th May 2022

The new children’s book published by Bats in Churches was a highlight at the Braunston-in-Rutland May Fayre, a traditional village fete and celebration of the church of All Saints.

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

Could you survey your local church for bats?

1st March 2022

Bats in Churches is appealing for volunteers to come forward and help with the final year of the National Bats in Churches Survey and Church Bat Detectives! Here’s what we’ve learned so far in this ambitious citizen science project, and how to get involved.

Rachel Arnold inspecting and cleaning the wooden cadaver in Keyston church

Come and work with us – Heritage Advisor vacancy

23rd February 2022

We’re currently looking for a new Heritage Advisor to help us provide heritage advice, guidance and support to our project churches. Does that sound like you?

A long eared bat looking at the camera, being held by a hand in a white cotton glove

Can bats harm the health of the congregation?

18th January 2022

One of the main reasons bats get a bad name is due to the belief they carry and spread diseases and sometimes church communities worry about the health impact of their resident bats. Lisa Worledge, Head of Conservation Services at Bat Conservation Trust, busts a few myths about rabies, issues with droppings and urine, and Covid-19.

A bat flying under an ancient beam inside a church tower

‘We’re on a continual curve of understanding’ Life as a bat ecologist

30th November 2021

Sleeping on tombs, batty surprises and the evolution of buildings – welcome to the world of ecologist Emily Dickins, of Bernwood Ecology. We caught up with her to find out a bit more about life as a registered consultant for Bats in Churches.

Interior of a church looking into chancel

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

2nd November 2021

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

29th October 2021

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

28th September 2021

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

8th July 2021

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.