Cornish hedgehog rescue centre renews Crowdfunder appeal to find new home
Prickles and Paws' planning application for a bigger premises has been rejected
Last updated 5th Aug 2022
A hedgehog rescue centre in Cornwall has issued a fresh appeal to help it find a new home.
Cubert based Prickles and Paws had submitted a planning application for a bigger premises on the Carnanton Estate, but the council rejected that.
The centre is renewing its Crowdfunder appeal to source a new site and recoup some of the costs.
Co-founder Katy South says they need to relocate because of soaring demand: "We admit sick, injured or orphaned hedgehogs and rehabilitate them through to release back into the wild. Last year was our busiest year by far which saw over 3,100 admissions.
"The rescue runs from a garden which isn't ideal on a residential housing estate. We're not really coping at the minute with the rate and have just had to add a new facility of a shed.
"We desperately need to find a new site which will allow us to accommodate the ever growing number of hedgehogs but also to accommodate new volunteers to help us run a little more smoothly".
Following the unsuccessful planning application for a new venue the group is appealing to the public for support to find a new site, to deal with growing demands.
Katy told us the current site is now unsuitable for them to help as many animals as possible.
She continued: "This is a disappointing result, and it comes at an especially challenging time for the charity; the last couple of months have seen our highest admission rates ever.
"We now face the additional challenge of recouping the £3000 spent on the surveys and the planning application fee – a significant amount for a small charity like Prickles & Paws. As such we wholeheartedly welcome any new opportunities that might be forthcoming, and are as always incredibly grateful for all of the support from the local community".
She added: "The last few years our admissions have gone up by nearly 30% year on year.
"We're looking for a new site. Ideally we'd like to stay as close as possible to Cubert. We're just asking for people to spread the word that we're looking for a site".
Information and a donation link can be found on the Prickles and Paws' Crowdfunder page.