Dental clinic director digs deep for wildlife charity

A dentist is swapping fillings for foliage as she backs a nature initiative.

Bex Cooper, director of Crossbank Dental Care in Kendal, has taken up the challenge of '30 Days Wild', an initiative coordinated by the UK’s 46 Wildlife Trusts.

Launched in 2015, 30 Days Wild urges people and organisations to value and protect the nature around them.

Supported by the various Wildlife Trusts around the country, the scheme promotes daily activities to cherish and aid wildlife.

Despite running a busy dental clinic, Ms Cooper was eager to make a difference.

She found an opportunity on a small patch of spare land behind the clinic's administrative building on Captain French Lane.

In an unexpected sight for staff and patients, Ms Cooper now spends her downtime trading her smart shoes for wellies, grabbing a spade and digging a new pond for wildlife.

Ms Cooper said: "It’s a small, ignored corner, certainly not enough room for a wildflower meadow!

“But after a little bit of research and asking advice, when I learned how much benefit a pond could bring, I was out with my spade the next morning!”

Ms Cooper with spade in hand digging the new pond (Image: Supplied)

Wildlife ponds are highly beneficial for nature, offering a safe place and food for different types of wildlife, including plants, snails, birds, pollinators and butterflies.

The Wildlife Trusts are encouraging people to take wildlife walks, construct a bug hotel, or plant pollinator-friendly flowers as part of the initiative, hoping to inspire support for wildlife beyond June.

Crossbank Dental Care already undertakes numerous sustainability efforts in its clinic, including reducing waste, using bamboo toilet roll, low energy bulbs, chlorine-free inks, recycled paper and solar panels.

They now plan to expand their support of Cumbria Wildlife Trust with a new sponsored tree planting scheme in the autumn.

Ms Cooper emphasised the value of starting small. She said: “We’ve deliberately allowed native plants to grow in nooks and crannies around the clinic, and we love hearing passing families pointing out the flowers and visiting insects to their children, just as we do with ours.

“I’m hoping our little pond can provide enjoyment and inspiration for people, as well as refuge for nature.

"Analysis of previous 30 Days Wild initiatives shows increased connection with nature brings improved health, happiness and relationship benefits.

"A tiny change can have a big, positive impact, even letting a corner of the garden grow wild, fitting a window box, or rewilding that old washing up bowl.

"Nature’s much more important - and rewarding - than the washing up, anyway!”