Registration No: 1091857
With over thirty years of experience under our belt, we rescue and rehabilitate wildlife from West Kent and East Sussex, treating and hand rearing around 3,500 animals each year.
Open 365 days a year, we take in all native species of wildlife including birds, hedgehogs, rabbits, badgers, rodents, amphibians and more.
As well as providing specialist care and veterinary treatment for injured, orphaned and distressed animals, we strive to educate the community of the plight of our wildlife and hopefully help reduce the number of accidents and incidents occurring.
Based on a site of 6 acres, much of our land surrounding the hospital includes remnants of former heathland that once made up the Broadwater Forest.
An ecological survey, very kindly carried out pro bono by Dolphin Ecological Surveys in 2010, produced a management plan to help restore this land to the bio-diverse mosaic of historic woodlands that once stood here.
This work is currently being undertaken by a small number of volunteers, who are already making good progress. We also have a small flock of hardy sheep who graze on the land that has already been cleared.
If you’d like to get involved, please take a read through our Volunteering page to see which roles we have available.
Annette Risley (Founder), working at Animal Aid at the time, brought home an injured hedgehog that a member of the public had found.
Annette and her family moved to Folly Cottage in Eridge. The work (which at the time was really little more than a hobby) continued, but already, small numbers of injured birds and other animals were being admitted.
with the number of admissions rapidly rising, Annette realized that there was a real need for a service of this nature and so Folly Wildlife Rescue was born!
In November 2000, there were two major breakthroughs, the first being a donation of £5000 by Sir Paul McCartney, in memory of his late wife Linda, and the second, the assistance Folly started to receive from the Crowborough, East Grinstead branch of the RSPCA, who not only donated a wide range of equipment, but our first wildlife ambulance too!
Registered charity status was applied for and The Folly Wildlife Rescue Trust, registered charity number 1091857, officially came into being!
The Wildlife Centre Project was launched, with the aim of raising, within 5 years, the £185,000 that it was estimated would be needed to establish a dedicated wildlife hospital (this figure, as it turned out, was grossly underestimated!)
Funding had been secured and a potential site on the Broadwater Forest had been identified.
A planning application was submitted to Wealden District Council.
Permission for the hospital was granted.
The Broadwater Forest Wildlife Hospital (Folly’s dedicated wildlife hospital) opened its doors for the first casualty admission – a hedgehog!
We stand today - a fully equipped and functioning wildlife hospital that provides an accessible and comprehensive service to local wildlife and the community.
As well as the practical work we carry out in our Wildlife Hospital, we are passionate about raising awareness and inspiring greater understanding of the challenges our wildlife face in today’s world.
Through engaging educational talks and presentations for schools, community groups, and adult audiences, we aim to inform, inspire, and encourage people to play their part in protecting and preserving our precious wildlife for future generations.
If you would like to hear more about our Educational Talks, please email admin@fwrt.org.uk to find out more information.
Melanie Huxley
We’re extremely lucky to have the support of our 4 passionate patrons, who have all seen first-hand the work we do.
The role of patron is not to offer any monetary support but to share our work and to support our fundraising.
We first got to know Jilly in 2004 when we were called to assist with a fallow deer she had rescued after it had been caught on a wire fence on the Ashdown Forest. A wine critic, journalist and lifestyle presenter, Jilly kindly donated her substantial share of the telephone vote from “I’m A Celebrity – Get Me Out Of Here” to Folly Wildlife Rescue. Jilly also enjoys getting hands on with our work, volunteering in the spring and summer to give us an extra pair of hands during the busy season!
Through his close friendship with the late Jeff Beck, Johnny visited Folly Wildlife Rescue in May 2022 to see for himself the Trust’s work with wildlife, we are delighted that Johnny has done us the great honour of agreeing to become a patron.
This is wonderful news, as it not only gives a much-deserved boost to our hard-working staff and volunteers but will help bring attention to the increasingly desperate plight of wildlife, that worldwide is under ever-increasing pressure from human activities – and needs all the help it can get.
United in her love for wildlife with late husband Jeff, Sandra has always been incredibly supportive and involved with our work, and her kindness and compassion for wildlife shines through.
“I was absolutely knocked out and thrilled to be asked to become a Patron for Folly Wildlife Rescue. Wildlife means a great deal to me and I look forward to the bright future of this incredible charity.” - Sandra Beck
Dave Davies, legendary lead guitarist and co-founder of The Kinks, became a patron in July 2024 after visiting our wildlife hospital to meet the team and see our site. A champion of our work, Dave is extremely active at promoting our charity via his social media platforms and generously donates signed memorabilia and merchandise to our online auction to help us raise much needed funds for the charity.
We are extremely thankful for you support and your generous donations and contributions.
Years Of Service
Admitted Animals Per Year
Funds Raised - November 2024
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All information given is kept private and confidential. We only use the information provided for the purpose of volunteer selection. Once completed please click on the 'Submit' button at the bottom of the page and we will contact you in due course.
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All information given is kept private and confidential. We only use the information provided for the purpose of volunteer selection. Once completed please click on the 'Submit' button at the bottom of the page and we will contact you in due course.
This will close in 0 seconds
All information given is kept private and confidential. We only use the information provided for the purpose of volunteer selection. Once completed please click on the 'Submit' button at the bottom of the page and we will contact you in due course.
This will close in 0 seconds
All information given is kept private and confidential. We only use the information provided for the purpose of volunteer selection. Once completed please click on the 'Submit' button at the bottom of the page and we will contact you in due course.
This will close in 0 seconds
All information given is kept private and confidential. We only use the information provided for the purpose of volunteer selection. Once completed please click on the 'Submit' button at the bottom of the page and we will contact you in due course.
This will close in 0 seconds
All information given is kept private and confidential. We only use the information provided for the purpose of volunteer selection. Once completed please click on the 'Submit' button at the bottom of the page and we will contact you in due course.
This will close in 0 seconds
All information given is kept private and confidential. We only use the information provided for the purpose of volunteer selection. Once completed please click on the 'Submit' button at the bottom of the page and we will contact you in due course.
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