Earning stripes

In the first corporate sponsorship of its kind, Taylor Wimpey has sponsored Woburn’s new tiger house, which is now home to two Amur tigers from the European Endangered Species Program (EEP), Elton and Minerva.

Peter Gurr, Managing Director for Taylor Wimpey North Thames, visited the park to see the new enclosure, which allows visitors to enjoy the amazing spectacle of these beautiful animals, and brought along the housebuilder’s Taylor Tiger mascot to meet Woburn’s own tiger mascot.

Taylor Wimpey has organised a series of events which have raised awareness of the new tigers at Woburn, including a storytelling session for pupils from St Andrew’s Lower School in Biggleswade who enjoyed a special reading of the classic children’s tale The Tiger Who Came To Tea at the housebuilder’s nearby Saxon Fields development in the town.

Peter says: “We are very proud to be involved in this unique partnership with Woburn Safari Park and I was delighted to visit the park myself to see the enclosure which our sponsorship has helped to provide.

“Our investment will also aid the conservation of the species, as the safari park is hoping the tigers will breed successfully and nurture future generations.

“We have also been thrilled to organise a series of highly successful tiger-themed events, which have raised awareness of this exciting project at Woburn.”

There are only an estimated 400 to 500 Amur tigers living in the wild, in the birch forests of Eastern Russia. They face a number of threats, mainly poaching and loss of habitat, and the EEP is playing an important role in trying to preserve the species and prevent its extinction.

Woburn Safari Park Commercial Manager, Claire Rhodes, says: “We are delighted to welcome Taylor Wimpey as our first corporate partner and the sole sponsor of the new Amur tiger house in the Kingdom of the Carnivores. At the same time, this investment is a valuable contribution to our fundraising, conservation and breeding plans for these endangered animals.

“This partnership programme is a brand new concept for Woburn Safari Park, providing just a few select companies a truly unique, fun-filled way to deliver on their corporate social responsibility commitments. In addition, it provides organisations with an inspirational environment that allows them to engage with their staff and customers and access to a whole host of on-site facilities which are ideal for a wide variety of activities, from the small intimate occasions, right up to a family fun day for 3,000 guests.”