A MONMOUTH teenager who has campaigned for gardeners to be more aware of hedgehogs has seen his campaign lead to real change - following support from a major equipment manufacturer.

Dylan Allman, 15, has spent the last two years raising awareness about hedgehogs – giving talks to local community groups, making films, running live-stream events, and working with the local rescue centre.

Now, at the start of Hedgehog Awareness Week 2022, Dylan has announced his campaign has secured a major win - thanks to Hyundai Power Products.

South Wales Argus: Dylan Allman has campaigned to raise awareness about hedgehogs for the last two years.Dylan Allman has campaigned to raise awareness about hedgehogs for the last two years.

Many hedgehogs suffer horrific injuries each year from gardening equipment because people forget to check before they start to strim and mow, so Dylan contacted Roland Llewellin, managing director of Genpower Ltd, a UK distributor of Hyundai Power Products, to tell them about his campaign.

Following this, Hyundai Power Products have agreed that every lawnmower and strimmer will be sold with a ‘Be Hedgehog Aware’ sticker on it.

“People don’t keep boxes that equipment comes in, and they need to be reminded to look for hedgehogs every time they’re about to strim or mow,” said Dylan.

“A sticker on the actual piece of equipment reminds the gardener to check for hedgehogs first, which means they are much less likely to be injured if they’re discovered before strimming or mowing begins.”

“We are delighted for Hyundai Power Products to be working with Dylan and his ‘Hedgehog Aware’ campaign,” said Mr Llewellin. “It’s a very worthwhile cause and also very inspiring to see someone of Dylan’s age driving this forward.

“The first batch of machines with the stickers on have just come off the production line, and we can’t wait to get those out to the UK’s gardeners and start making a difference to helping reduce the number of hedgehogs injured in gardens.”

South Wales Argus: Hyundai Power Products lawnmowers and strimmers will have a ‘Be Hedgehog Aware’ sticker on them after Dylan's campaign.Hyundai Power Products lawnmowers and strimmers will have a ‘Be Hedgehog Aware’ sticker on them after Dylan's campaign.

As part of Hedgehog Awareness Week 2022, Dylan will be live-streaming an event that takes place on Saturday, May 7 on his YouTube channel ‘hedgehogaware’, where he will be joined by Mr Llewellin, as well as the local rescue centre.

Grace Johnson, hedgehog officer for Hedgehog Street – a joint campaign between wildlife charities People’s Trust for Endangered Species and The British Hedgehog Preservation Society – said: “Dylan is a fantastic Hedgehog Champion who is really making a difference for hedgehogs.

“We are thrilled that Hyundai Power Products are supporting Dylan, and we hope many other organisations follow suit and ensure that anyone using their products are ‘hedgehog aware’ when out gardening.”