In 2005 HelpWildlife.co.uk founder, Sarah, gathered together a list of the UK wildlife rescues of which she was aware to help her to assist people posting on online forums about sick and injured wildlife.

Gradually the site expanded and developed and that single page list is now a searchable directory of over 600 wildlife rescue organisations and independent rescuers across the UK. Visitors are referred to us by other rescues and organisations such as the RSPB, and is used by around a quarter of a million people a year!

Although there are other sites which list animal rescues we think HelpWildlife.co.uk is unique and the most comprehensive, reliable and up to date list of UK wildlife rescues available. We only list rescues which can help with wildlife and we proactively look for new rescues to add. We check every listing at least every six months to make sure the contact information remains up to date although, in practice, between rescues being able to edit their own listings, feedback left by visitors, and the feedback we get via our helpdesk, our site is updated pretty quickly if a rescue changes their contact information, closes down, or even if they’re full.

Our aim is to list every source of help for sick and injured wildlife in the UK. However, we found that, as the site became busier some smaller rescues found the number of calls generated by a listing on the site was too much to handle. So, in 2019, we introduced a three tier system to the directory, so the bulk of the contacts were directed at the larger rescues and smaller rescues could reduce their visibility.

Our volunteers work constantly to try and ensure the directory is up to date and easy to use. We are always open to feedback and the involvement of anyone involved in wildlife rescue. We’d love to hear from you!