Making game the name in wildlife conservation

With the increasing pressures being placed on our wildlife and the countryside, conservation has become the new watch-word.  With this in mind, The Game Conservancy Trust, one of the most respected research charities in this country, has changed its name to reflect the relevance of its work on broader conservation issues. 

From the 1st October, The Game Conservancy Trust will become the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust.  To accompany the name-change the Trust has also unveiled a new logo, which still incorporates the iconic grey partridge, but is fresh and modern and skillfully depicts this much loved farmland bird. 

Commenting on the new name, Teresa Dent, the Trust’s chief executive, said, “We are all really delighted with the new name and logo, and I believe that these subtle changes more accurately reflect what we do.  It has been a fascinating process, particularly because we carried out an extensive market research study prior to initiating any major changes.  Through the study, which involved more than 2,500 people, we discovered how people view and use the countryside.  We were greatly reassured by the huge number of people that feel an affinity for the countryside irrespective of where they live.”

Throughout the re-branding process, the Trust was acutely aware that it needed to maintain the support of its loyal members and staff.  Teresa continues, “Game remains central to our core beliefs as does the recognition that game management plays a vital part in the wider conservation of the countryside.” 

Mark Hudson, Chairman of the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust is equally pleased with the name-change and said, “For some years there has been an active debate about whether our name reflects the breadth of work we do, which extends beyond game species into many aspects of wildlife, and countryside management, including research into farmland ecology, conservation of farmland birds, entomology and wildlife-friendly farming.  The new name and logo should help us to communicate this message more effectively and I believe that this better reflects the work we have done over the past 75 years and will continue to do so in the future.  Also, linking game and wildlife together puts game into the right context and emphasises our view that game conservation is an integral part of nature conservation.”

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Notes to editors

The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust is an independent wildlife conservation charity which carries out scientific research into Britain’s game and wildlife. We advise farmers and landowners on improving wildlife habitats and we lobby for agricultural and conservation policies based on science. We employ 14 post-doctoral scientists and 50 other research staff with expertise in areas such as birds, insects, mammals, farming and statistics.  We undertake our own research as well as projects funded by contract and grant-aid from Government and private bodies.   The Trust is also responsible for a number of Government Biodiversity Action Plan species and is lead partner for grey partridge and joint lead partner for brown hare and black grouse.

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