Otley-based photographer Hollie Rushton creates calendar of local fauna in support of wildlife charity

The initiative comes as colleagues at the home partnered with wildlife charity Wildlife Friendly Otley to revamp their grounds to encourage more wildlife into the garden.

The calendar, which includes original imagery captured throughout the past year by Hollie Rushton, was printed and sold to members of the local community, raising £150 for the charity, with hopes of releasing a new calendar in 2023, which will include imagery of wildlife across the whole of Otley.

In addition to helping raise awareness of the fauna native to the Otley area, the project also helped Hollie overcome her grief following her father and grandmother’s deaths. In fact, the idea to collaborate for the benefit of local wildlife came after colleagues at the Otley funeral home organised the services for Hollie’s loved ones, as they were aware of how important it was to help bereaved family members focus on passion projects in order to work through the pain of losing a loved one.

Rob Tindall, Funeral Director at the Co-op Funeralcare in Otley, said: “It’s incredible to see how a few small changes can make such a huge impact on how wildlife-friendly the green areas in our local communities are. We were so pleased to be involved with this initiative and look forward to working on next year’s calendar.

"This initiative was also a great reminder of the little things you can do to help those dealing with loss. We encourage everyone to check in on their friends, neighbours and co-workers, as you never know who may be dealing with bereavement and in need of something else to channel their energy and passion into.”