9 January 2026

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We’re excited to share a new way you can support Hop Spots, our upcoming national education project inspiring children and young people to protect the UK’s native amphibians and reptiles.

Thanks to funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, we’re currently in the development phase of Hop Spots. This stage allows us to co-design education resources, consult with communities, and plan activities that will help create the next generation of nature champions. To move from development into full delivery, we now need to raise match funding.

To help make this possible, we’ve launched a JustGiving donation page.

Supporting Hop Spots through our JustGiving page

We’ve launched a JustGiving donation page to help raise vital funds for ARC’s education work, including our flagship Hop Spots project. At ARC, we work to connect people with the incredible amphibians and reptiles living on their doorstep. Through education, we aim to spark curiosity, deepen understanding, and inspire action to protect native species and their habitats.

Many children today are growing up increasingly disconnected from nature, with opportunities like school trips to green spaces becoming rarer due to budget constraints. Funds raised through JustGiving will support hands-on learning experiences – from classroom lessons and school visits to outdoor activities that bring conservation to life and help children understand biodiversity and the importance of caring for the natural world.

Your support can make a tangible difference:

• £300 could fund transport to take a class to a local nature reserve
• £100 could provide pond-dipping equipment for hands-on learning about freshwater wildlife
• £10 could supply wildlife journals or sketchbooks for children to record their discoveries

Crucially, donations to the JustGiving page can be used as match funding, helping us unlock additional support from funders. We are currently raising match funding for Hop Spots!, supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund. We’ve already raised £18,500 of our £99,000 target offline, leaving £80,500 still to raise. With your help, we can give more children the chance to explore, learn, and fall in love with the wild.

Support Hop Spots via our JustGiving page here: JustGiving donation page.

What is Hop Spots?

Hop Spots will work with young people across key herpetological ‘hot spots’ in Merseyside, East Anglia, and Dorset, helping them connect with nature, build confidence and skills, and take action for wildlife.

With your support, the project will:

• Provide conservation training and green skills for young people
• Deliver engaging education resources focused on native amphibians and reptiles
• Create accessible volunteering and networking opportunities
• Support wellbeing and nature connection, helping to combat eco-anxiety

Every donation, no matter the size, will help us unlock vital funding and take Hop Spots one step closer to full delivery. If you’re unable to donate, sharing the JustGiving page with others is a huge help too.

Thank you for supporting Amphibian and Reptile Conservation and for helping us inspire young people to protect nature, now and into the future.