How It All Began
Living Seas/Noel Hawkins working in schools
A local BDMLR medic visited Ullapool Primary to tell the kids about a whale rescue. After taking on a role with the Scottish Wildlife Trust he looked to engage kids locally with marine and wildlife events.
Local Traffic Incidents With Squirrels
Red Squirrels had been reintroduced to the area by Dundonnell Estate and the Roy Dennis Foundation and began to show up around Ullapool – unfortunately often hit by cars. Noel put up some signs but these were taken down as deemed not legal. He asked the kids if they could help.
Poster Designs
Caillin approached her class teacher Mary Rose MacNeil and asked if they could make some posters to put up on the roadside to highlight the squirrels. When these attracted attention on social media and the news, politicians intervened and granted permission for signs that are now on the main road south of Ullapool.
The poster was asking motorists coming off the ferry to drive more slowly through the woods on the edge of town.
Calmac Involvement
Realising that a lot of traffic through Ullapool is from the Stornoway-Ullapool ferry, the Squirrel kids approached CalMac and were invited onto the ferry to put up posters highlighting the issue to drivers coming to Ullapool by sea.
Onboard the Calmac MV Loch Seaforth ferrry.
Loch Carron Dredging
After a scallop dredger destroyed a large part of the flame shell reef at Loch Carron (believed to be one of the biggest in the world) campaigners began calling for a Marine Protected Area to ensure the reefs were safe. Caillin made a model of the seabed and flameshells to highlight what an amazing species they are and how damaging this incident was.
The squirrel team" got back to work, writing letters to MSPs asking for better protection for the flame shells. When the area was designated a temporary MPA, their sense that their voices do get heard and can make a real difference was confirmed!
Caillin’s flameshell model
Plastic Straws
Children in primary 7 at Ullapool Primary school and visiting kids from Sunnyside Primary in Glasgow campaigned with the Living Seas Project to get businesses to replace plastic straws with alternatives and made Ullapool the first plastic straw free community in the UK.
Caillin with Seaforth manager
Parliamentary Recognitions
The straw and squirrel sign attracted a lot of media attention and also politicians in the area took notice that the kids were standing up for things they believed in and this was highlighted in many newspapers, on TV and at Holyrood
Sea Savers & Sunnyside
Ullapool Sea Savers Formed
Caillin, Poppy and Laura realised they enjoyed campaigning for nature and wanted to do this more and outside of school time. They decided to set up their own group to choose what to do and how to campaign and approached Noel Hawkins to ask for support. He helped them and Janis to plot a course to setting up what is now the ‘Ullapool Sea Savers’ and they even got their own logo
(thanks to Duncan Todd!)
- ULLAPOOL SEA SAVERS SCIO
- Company Number - SC049213
- OSCR - Scottish Charity Regulator
- Companies House
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