Unique bird box brightens up St Catherine’s Park

St Catherine’s Park has gained a unique new feature for the enjoyment of hospice patients and visitors to the gardens.

Russell Ramsey makes quirky bird boxes in his spare time, which use solar-powered energy to light up the little windows.

Russell, from Wharton, has donated one of his creations to St Catherine’s Hospice, after hearing about the good work the charity does to care for people with life-shortening illnesses such as cancer, Motor Neurone Disease, and MS.

He said: “I’ve been making bird boxes for about five or six years and have one in my garden. I’ve sold most of them to friends, but I thought it might be worth donating one to St Catherine’s because it’s something nice for patients to look at when they’re out in the grounds.

“I hadn’t actually visited the hospice before and I was surprised at how big the grounds are – it’s a really lovely setting.”

It takes Russell around three weeks to complete a bird box, and he works on them for about five hours a day. His designs vary from houses to churches, and the one in St Catherine’s Park is a white house with a tiled roof and flowers in the window.

Stephen Webster, the hospice’s maintenance manager who looks after the grounds, said: “St Catherine’s Park is open to the public and has lots of wonderful attractions, from our beautiful sensory garden and bluebell wood, to a wetland reserve and The Mill café and community hub.

“Russell’s bird box is a perfect addition and I’m sure it will be very popular with the small birds we have in the park, as well as hospice patients, their families, and members of the community. We’d like to thank him for his hard work and for thinking of us – it’s a very thoughtful gesture.”

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