Wildlife park opens hub featuring erupting volcano

Wildlife park opens hub featuring erupting volcanoJust nowShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleJosh Lovatt,at Shepreth Wildlife ParkandAimee DexterJosh Lovatt/BBCAn interactive sandbox is one of the ways the wildlife park aims to engage visitorsA wildlife park has opened an interactive conservation hub to help young visitors learn about nature.Shepreth Wildlife Park in Cambridgeshire said the new building featured a range of interactive screens and projections to aid understanding, including an erupting volcano.Rebecca Willers, director of the park, said: "We are so excited to have this different way of bringing children to the wildlife park and getting them to leave with a message."Shepreth Wildlife Conservation Charity (SWCC) said the project received funding from South Cambridgeshire District Council's Rural England Prosperity Fund.Josh Lovatt/BBCRebecca Willers said the hub aimed to engage visitorsSWCC was set up in 2011 and raises funds to educate visitors about species at risk of extinction. It also funds the park's on-site hedgehog hospital.Willers said the idea of a conservation hub had been discussed for about eight years."It is a dream come true, as when we started the charity, our aim was to get a hedgehog hospital [and] to raise money for charities all over the world; we have done that, and our next step was a conservation centre," she added.Josh Lovatt/BBCThe building is next to the site's play areaThe new building included two areas: Wild Play and The Hive.She said Wild Play had three interactive activities, including a sandbox where scenarios are projected and a 6ft (1.8m) touchscreen where people could play conservation games.Willers said the charity was looking for volunteers to help run Wild Play and to speak to visitors about conservation and nature.Do you have a story suggestion for Cambridgeshire? Contact us below.Follow Cambridgeshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.More stories like thisDry April...