21 May 2008 11:27 Round the robins: Substation builders work around nesting birds

Central Networks, the electricity distribution company for central England, expected to be the first to take ownership of a new substation in Leicestershire - but a pair of robins had other ideas!

The feathered friends moved in and built their nest in a pallet of bricks at the new 132kV substation at Meaford during a break in the construction programme.

By the time the construction team was ready to start on site again, the chirpy pair had not only built their nest but become proud expectant parents to four eggs.

Naturally neither the contractor nor the Central Networks team wanted to disturb the birds and they consulted the RSPB about the best way to protect the robins while construction continued.

The pallets of bricks were fenced and screened to allow the robins to sit on the nest without being disturbed by construction teams. 

Fortunately, robins are much more comfortable with having people nearby than many other types of birds, and they were monitored as the build continued to ensure that they were not being frightened away from the nest.

Just two weeks after the robins were first discovered, the eggs hatched and a fortnight later the fledglings were ready to leave the nest - just in time to fit in with the contractor's schedule for putting the roof on the building!

"Both the Central Networks colleagues who made visits to site during construction and the bricklayers on site became quite fond of the robins," said Operations Engineer, John Mather. "It's great that the contractor was able to accommodate the birds within the construction schedule without causing any delays to the project.

"They also managed to save several mature trees, along with the bluebells and common orchids growing beneath them. It's a great example of how we can build our environmental principles into new development projects."

Ends

Notes to editors:

• Central Networks brings power to 4.9 million customers across central England through 133,000km of underground and overhead cables and via almost 97,000 substations;
• Central Networks covers an area from the Peak District in the north to parts of Bristol in the south, and from the Welsh Borders to the Lincolnshire Coast.

For further information contact:

Andrew Barrow on 024 7618 3677
A selection of Central Networks pictures is available free of charge to the media by registering at www.newscast.co.uk and looking under Distribution