Soapy stars Ivy and Zoe Hollings: Image by: Kelly Hollings.
No rest for Ivy and Zoe
Eight year old Bellingham twins Ivy and Zoe Hollings thought they were in for a great couple of months… no getting up early for school, then the Easter holidays and then maybe more time off school. Magic!
Well, imagine their grumbles when they were presented with a bucket of water, sponge and the very mucky Restoring Ratty vehicle (or Ratty van to everybody on the project) to clean by their mum, Kelly Hollings, Restoring Ratty Project Officer.
The Restoring Ratty project is working to reintroduce water voles to the Kielder and Forest Park and is delivered by Northumberland Wildlife Trust, Forestry England and Tyne Rivers Trust. It is supported by National Lottery players through a grant of £421,000 via The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Although Kelly and her team of Ratty volunteers have suspended working for the moment and are having a well-earned rest - after all they have released 1,498 water voles since June 2017 and much more besides that, Forestry England is working behind the scenes helping to keep the project buoyant by checking mink traps together with local landowners and farmers. Everybody is pulling together.
As for Ivy and Zoe, the isolation can’t end quick enough so they can put the buckets and sponges away and wave their mum and her pesky vehicle off down the road and back to work.