Are Towers Worth the Money?

To be brutaly honest we now consider swift towers on poles as a waste of time and effort. Why spend up to £40,000 on a tower when that money could do on better projects in towns and cities. They are very hard work and must be surveyed to check for occupancy. Here in Northern Ireland there are only 2 towers out of 15 that have swifts nesting. One has 2 and the other we are told has "12". Maybe they are just too alien to swifts

This is a swift tower in the Bog Meadows in Belfast that as far as we know has never had swifts

What about a swift tower made from bricks or blocks? There could be open eaves leading to enclosed swift nest boxes and bricked added to the walls. There could be up to 50 nests in one tower. One could be built in every new school yard and housing estate. There could be a few in an estate of several hundred houses. No need for doors or windows or maybe a high door that needs a ladder to allow bird ringers to get inside