Heeley City Farm, one of Sheffield’s best-loved green spaces, has taken an important step to support the city’s red-listed swifts.

With Tesco Stronger Starts funding through Groundwork’s blue token scheme, the Farm has installed ten swift bricks on its buildings, creating safe, long-term nesting spaces for future generations of Sheffield’s vulnerable summer visitors.

The project builds on Heeley City Farm’s ongoing work to improve habitats across the site. Native wildflowers, new hedgerows and wildlife-friendly management are already supporting nature at ground level; the swift bricks add valuable nesting opportunities, making the Farm’s buildings part of Sheffield’s wider urban nature network. It is a strong example of the joined-up, community-led action for which the city is well known

To attract swifts, we donated a Peak Boxes swift attraction caller, which will play swift calls in spring and early summer to signal that the bricks offer suitable nesting sites. Listen out for it playing!

Local specialist fitter Jan from Nestworks carried out the installation, keeping the project firmly rooted in our community. Jan installed all ten bricks in a single day while the scissor lift was on hire – an impressive effort that reflects the practical commitment behind the project. From shoppers placing blue tokens in store, to farm staff and volunteers improving habitats, to specialists fitting nest bricks overhead, this has been a genuine Sheffield team effort for swifts.

We are grateful to Sarah Wilde at Heeley City Farm, Sarah Blandy of Heeley and Meersbrook Swifts, and Jess Reilly at S2 Swifts for helping create much-needed nesting places and inspiring others to act for nature.

We will keep in touch with the Farm to monitor the bricks and share any success stories. If you visit during swift season, look up and listen out for noisy fly-pasts. If you see a swift using a brick, or any other species moving in, do let us know.

Could your building provide a safe home for Sheffield’s young swifts?

We offer community talks and free site assessments to help you create swift nesting opportunities and identify suitable artificial nest locations. As a small charity, we cannot fund boxes, bricks or installation, but we can advise on products and support ordering once funding is secured.

Download our Nests for Sheffield’s Swifts PDF below, or get in touch:

Click here for a list of local swift groups. 

Sheffield Swift Network
📧 sheffieldswiftnetwork@gmail.com
🌐 sheffieldswiftnetwork.org
📞 07850 799 891