Nottinghamshire nature reserve 'heartened' by donations after break-in

Staff at a Nottinghamshire nature reserve have been "heartened" by donations made after it was broken into.

Thieves targeted Attenborough Nature Reserve in February, causing damage and taking costly power tools.

Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, which runs the wetland, said it faced a bill of up to £10,000 as a result of the break-in.

But it has since had an "outpouring" of donations to help eliminate that cost.

Erin McDaid, the trust's head of communications, praised the "kind and generous response" from individuals, councillors and businesses.

"That pressure has gone away, which is an amazing response," he said.

"It means the team has got the tools they need and we won't be facing that bill."

Infrastructure firm McCanns Ltd and Marshall Industrial Supplies Ltd, both based in Nottingham, donated tools while two county councillors donated £1,000 from their respective divisional funds, the trust said.

The trust said it lost the tools at an "important time" - before nesting season when work such as trimming and felling could not take place.

Mr McDaid said it meant vegetation around public paths on its sites "might be a bit more rough around the edges" than staff would have liked but hoped visitors would understand.

The work will now not take place until next season.

Mr McDaid said he believed the "major theft of tools across the county" was a problem that "needed to be looked into more generally".

A investigation into the theft is ongoing with no arrests made so far, according to Nottinghamshire Police.

Follow BBC East Midlands on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected] or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.