Swift nesting boxes installed at schools and town hall to help save declining ‘Bird of the Borough’

Doagh Primary School is helping protect local wildlife with the installation of three new swift nest boxes and a caller system. L–R: Cllr Archibald‑Brown, Edward McKee, Esther McKee, Cllr Stewart, the Outgoing Deputy Mayor Cllr Gilmour, Kate McAlister, George Acheson and school principal Mrs Brown. Front row: P5 pupils from Doagh Primary School.

Seven new Swift nesting boxes have been installed at sites in Doagh and Ballyclare as part of a growing effort to protect one of the borough’s most recognisable — and rapidly declining — bird species.

The new nesting spaces, created at Doagh Primary School and Ballyclare Town Hall, are designed to provide safe long-term homes for Common Swifts, which are now red-listed as a Bird of Conservation Concern due to major population declines across the UK and Ireland.

The project brings together Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council and the RSPB Antrim Local Group in a bid to both support Swift conservation and raise awareness of biodiversity across the borough.

New nesting sites created in Doagh and Ballyclare

Doagh Primary School pupils celebrate the installation of three new swift nest boxes and a caller system at alongside the Outgoing Deputy Mayor Cllr Gilmour, RSPB Antrim Local Group representatives Edward McKee, Esther McKee and Kate McAllister. 

Doagh Primary School has received three new Swift nesting boxes, while Ballyclare Town Hall now features a purpose-built Swift terrace containing four nest sites.

The specially constructed terrace at Ballyclare Town Hall was funded by the RSPB Antrim Local Group and built by one of its members through the organisation’s Homes for Swifts project.

To help attract birds to the new locations, the group also provided a Swift caller system, which plays recorded Swift calls designed to encourage the birds to investigate and eventually adopt the nesting sites.

Swifts are famous for spending most of their lives in flight, travelling thousands of miles between Europe and Africa each year. They return to Northern Ireland between May and July to breed and raise their young before migrating again for the winter months.

Concerns over declining Swift numbers

Swift terrace containing four nest boxes have now been installed at Ballyclare Town Hall, positioned on the side of the tower without the clock face. Pictured are the Outgoing Mayor, Outgoing Deputy Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, local Ballyclare Councillorsand members of the local RSPB Group who supported the project. 

The Common Swift has suffered significant population losses in recent decades, largely due to habitat loss and the decline of suitable nesting spaces in buildings.

Conservation groups across the UK and Ireland have increasingly focused on creating artificial nesting sites as traditional roof spaces and older structures disappear through redevelopment and modern construction methods.

Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council says the latest installations form part of its wider biodiversity and wildlife conservation work under its Positive Planning Note programme, launched in 2025.

The initiative aims to encourage sustainable development while helping safeguard habitats for threatened species including Swifts.

School pupils learning about conservation

Outgoing Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, Councillor Leah Kirkpatrick, said the project showed how local communities could work together to protect wildlife.

She said:

“I am delighted to see these new Swift boxes installed at both Doagh Primary School and Ballyclare Town Hall.

“Protecting our Swifts is a responsibility we all share, and projects like this show how communities, schools and the RSPB Antrim Local Group can work together to make a real difference.

“These small actions help preserve an iconic species that has been part of our Borough’s natural heritage for generations.”

Outgoing Deputy Mayor Councillor Julie Gilmour said the initiative was also helping children better understand the species and its remarkable migration journey.

She said:

“I am delighted to see this collaboration.

“It’s inspiring to see these sites taking practical steps to embed biodiversity into their ethos by protecting our Swifts.

“The children now have a wonderful understanding of the Swift’s incredible journey, migrating to Africa during the winter months before returning here between May and July to raise their chicks.”

RSPB group says local action can make a difference

Kate McAllister, Secretary of the RSPB Antrim Local Group and one of the borough’s Swift advocates, said practical projects like this could play an important role in protecting the species locally.

She said:

“Swifts are extraordinary birds that spend most of their lives in the air.

“By installing Swift boxes at Doagh Primary School, pupils are making a real contribution to conservation.

“It’s also fantastic to see the new Swift terrace at Ballyclare Town Hall, helping raise awareness of how we can all protect local wildlife.”

The latest installations are expected to become active during future breeding seasons as Swifts begin identifying and returning to suitable nesting sites across the borough.