NEXT week is Hedgehog Awareness Week, and the woman who runs a rescue shelter from her home in Malvern is urging people to keep an eye out for the prickly creatures.

Viv Smith, who officially set up Malvern Hedgehog Rescue back in 2009, explained: “We’ve had a lot of hedgehogs recently coming in really emaciated. The ground is so hard because there has been so little rain that they are really struggling to find food.”

Viv currently has about a dozen hedgehog residents with her at her home in Matthias Close, but at times there have been more than 50.

Along with a hospital block and a recovery block, her shelter also houses a collection of runs where hedgehogs about to be released back into the wild prepare for their move.

Viv is now gearing up for her busiest time of year. Because hedgehogs tend to hibernate through the winter, rescue season generally stretches over the summer months.

She advises that any hedgehog seen out during daylight hours is likely to need urgent attention, and should be contained in a high-sided box before calling the shelter on 07780 834411.

For more information visit malvernhedgehogrescue.co.uk.