The Kentish Stour Countryside Project has been working throughout East Kent to help conserve one of Britain's most iconic species, the Barn Owl. The Project has recently been in the media with an appearance on the River Walks programme with Charlie Dimmock on ITV.

For centuries, Barn Owls have been a familiar sight throughout the English countryside, often seen silently hunting at dusk, or in the early morning. However changes in agriculture have put pressure on the owls, causing a significant drop in their numbers. This is mainly due to the lack of suitable nesting sites and available feeding habitat. Most modern barns are unsuitable for nesting and the conversion of grasslands to arable, combined with the loss of hedgerows and use of pesticides, has severely eroded their hunting grounds. Barn Owls mainly feed on small mammals like voles and mice, which means they rely on good numbers of these to sustain their young. 2006 was not the best year for small mammals, possibly due to the weather, and this could have affected the breeding success of Barn Owls.

Barn Owls are a protected species under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, making it illegal to disturb them or their nest sites, and they can only be surveyed with a special licence.

Over the past years the KSCP has been working with landowners and organisations in the area, helping to protect and conserve these fantastic birds. Nesting sites have been provided by volunteers putting up over 40 nest boxes, and the Project has helped farmers and landowners to turn arable land back into grassland, through environmental incentive schemes. The nest boxes are surveyed every year and the results are encouraging with Barn Owls regularly using the boxes!