2025 Directory Changes

2025 is our 20th anniversary! Yep, our site was originally registered on the 31st December 2025. It’s changed a whole lot since then (you can read more about this here) but we are committed to continuously looking for ways to make our site better and easier to use. So what better way to celebrate our birthday with a big revamp of the directory?! There are too many changes to list each and every one, but below you’ll find a summary of the main changes. If you’ve got any feedback for us, you can let us know on our feedback page – we’re always interested in your input. If you spot any problems or errors, please email [email protected] and we’ll get them sorted ASAP.

Searching for a Rescue

We’ve made the following changes in respect of how you search for a rescue on our site

  • Removed the map from the search results. The feedback we were receiving was that this wasn’t a particularly useful feature. Some visitors were using the map pin location to try to travel to the rescue unannounced. The map also didn’t display on mobile creating a two tier experience which we wanted to correct.
  • Changed the display of listing results to be 1 per line, to include opening times, and to be clearer when a rescue is temporarily closed. We hope that displaying the results like this rather than as a grid helps to emphasise that these are a list which should be worked through rather than only trying the closest result. Flagging listings which are closed should help visitors focus their efforts on currently open and available rescues.
  • Hidden the private sections of the directory from the search dropdown. This allows users to focus their search on the public sections (rescues, small rescues and national organisations) and reduces confusion when they find they can’t view other sections.
  • Changed the search provider to OpenMaps rather than Google. This will reduce costs.
  • Included guidance on the search results page, highlighting other sections of the directory.

Directory Sections (formerly tiers)

We first split our directory into tiers in 2020, with the aim of focusing contacts to larger better resourced rescues first to both protect the smaller rescues from too many contacts, and maximise visitors chances of contacting a rescue with capacity. In this revamp we have

  • Renamed ‘tiers’ to ‘sections’. We’d noticed some perception amongst rescuers that ‘tiers’ implied some sort of hierarchy and, in a handful of cases, this led to unhappiness about being on what was perceived to be a ‘lower’ tier. We hope this change will clarify that no hierarchy is implied in the directory sections.
  • Renamed the ‘Community Heroes’ section to ‘Reserves’. The Community Heroes tier/section was originally set up to list ordinary individuals who could provide assistance in the form of transport or very short term care. Over the years it has evolved to be where we list individual rehabbers and newly formed rescues. We therefore felt ‘Reserves’ better reflected what this section is now used for.
  • Added a new section for Wildlife Friendly Vets. Previously, these were included in the Community Heroes section. We have long wanted to do something to encourage vets to be wildlife friendly and be listed as such in our directory. Splitting vets on to their own section is the first step in this process. Currently these listings remain visible just to our volunteers and will be used when those who contact our HelpDesk haven’t been able to find help from a rescue.
  • Added a new section for National Organisations. We have previously struggled with how to list organisations which operate nationally as the geographical nature of the directory meant each listing needed a location and would only be shown to people searching in that area. By adding a new section specifically for national organisations, we can remove the geographical component for those listings. This section will compliment the main listings, providing details of groups who provide assistance (or can help locate assistance) throughout the UK. National listings can also be ‘linked’ to geographical listings e.g. the National Bat Conservation Trust listing is linked to the geographical Bat Group listings.

Listing Status, Fields and other Features

We’ve added some new fields to listings to increase the information available, and tweaked some others to better clarify details.

  • Added new fields for ‘Tiktok’ and ‘WhatsApp’. This is to reflect more rescues now using these platforms for communications or to raise awareness of their work. 
  • Changed the field giving information about the best way to contact a rescue to make this a standard selection field rather than free text. Hopefully this will encourage visitors to use the most appropriate contact route.
  • Added some guidance on the listings about what the species types mean to hopefully make it clearer what types of animal a rescue can help with.
  • Expanded telephone number fields to accommodate up to four numbers. This is to better accommodate rescues which might use multiple phone numbers depending on time of day or location.
  • Changed the available categories from being species focused to rescue type. The previous categories were used to display default images on listings and the search map. As the search map is no more, and we’ve introduced a new default listing image, using categories to record the listing type will help us to determine which section of the directory a listing is best suited to.
  • Split listings into two packages – one for those which are claimed by the rescue, and one for listings which are maintained by HelpWildlife volunteers. We introduced the ability for rescues to claim their listings in 2019. Claimed listings take pressure off our volunteers and, more importantly, ensure the listing information is correct. Around 43% of listings are now claimed but not all rescues maintain those listings well. To encourage rescues to claim and maintain their listings, listings on the ‘claimed’ package will be able to add extra information (a logo, extra phone numbers, and a donation link) and will be eligible for donations via our £1 for Wildlife campaign. If a rescue does not renew their listing when requested, the package will automatically downgrade, removing those fields and the ‘owner verified’ badge from their listing. These can be reinstated any time by the rescue logging in and editing their listing. This makes it clearer to visitors which listings are actively maintained by the rescue as opposed to just claimed but then neglected.
  • Added a new listing status of ‘Expired’. Previously listings could either be Live, Closed, or Archived. Expired listings will remain on the site in full but will not appear in search results. This gives us a status for listings where we are not confident enough in their current status to offer them in search results but where we’re not certain they’re closed. A banner will appear on these listings encouraging feedback to help us ascertain the rescue’s current status.
  • Reviewed our listing management processes to incorporate more automation and fewer steps, reducing the burden on our volunteers.
  • Refreshed the listing design. Hopefully this is more visually appealing and the information is clearer. We’ve added some ‘notes’ to explain some of the information and guide visitors on how best to use it.
  • Added a section to each listing which guides the rescue representative through the steps to take to manage the listing for themselves.
  • Improved the appearance of banners notifying visitors that a rescue is closed or a listing expired, including adding the ability to search for alternative rescues from that banner.
  • Tweaked the feedback form and how the results are displayed. This includes removing ‘contact info wrong’ feedback from display once it has been actioned, and further work to exclude inappropriate entries.

Miscellaneous Changes

  • Refreshed the overall appearance of the directory site, bringing it inline with that of the ‘main’ site.
  • Rebuilt the site menus to make them clearer and more logical.
  • Improved the way listings appear when the site is visited on a mobile device.
  • Refreshed our terms of use and other policies.
  • Reduced the number of plugins the site uses to help with performance and reduce costs by removing some paid plugins.
  • Added some analytics code to help us track how the site is being used and identify improvements needed.
  • Resolved an issue which was preventing the display of listings from the Channel Islands and Isle of Man.

Website Accounts

Rescuers can register on the directory site to be able to claim and manage their listing. We’ve made the following changes to account features

  • Fixed an issue which meant profile and account pages were previously not displaying well, removed irrelevant information from those pages, and replaced it with more useful links.
  • Added new fields to the registration form/account page which allow users to indicate interest in getting involved with steering the development of the site, and receiving information about relevant studies and surveys.
  • Reviewed standard emails sent out to users when they sign up, claim a listing, or when a listing needs attention. Hopefully these are now clearer.
  • Moved information relevant to rescuers into a new ‘rescue zone’ which is only visible to logged in users.

And we're not done!

There were some other changes we’d hoped to make which we’ve had to pause for now for various reasons. In the not too distant future we hope to

  • Add a listing field for BlueSky
  • Add a field which enables a rescue to highlight any governance in place (e.g. Registered Charity, CIC etc)
  • Activate features on the site which will allow registered rescuers to ‘DM’ and ‘friend’ each other
  • Introduce discussion groups where registered rescuers can collaborate and share information
  • Reviewing the structure, content and display of our advice articles to simplify and consolidate them and to be able to say goodbye to a paid plugin
  • Explore the possibility of adding buttons to listings which would allow listing owners to renew or set them as temporarily closed quicker
  • Look at creating a simple app for searching the directory from a mobile device