Would you like to support Friends of Horsey Seals and their work protecting the seals on the East Norfolk coastline? For a subscription of £12 per year which covers your whole household, you can become a Friend of our registered charity. This entitles you to exclusive content, quarterly newsletters and free guided walks during the pupping season. Friend’s contributions help us to pay for running our volunteer warden scheme and our seal rescue team. Go to our Friends section to find out more.
Helping Seals Thrive
The Atlantic Grey seal colony at Horsey and Winterton is one of Britain’s great wildlife spectacles. The flat beaches, shallow waters and high dunes offer seals an ideal location for giving birth. The work of Friends of Horsey Seals (FoHS) to protect the seals from disturbance and injury is vital for the long-term survival of the colony.

Photo by Laura Lake
Emergency?
If you see any seals in difficulty, please contact the FoHS Rescue Team on 07706 314514
or the RSPCA on 0300 1234999.


How we warden, rescue and campaign for the seals
Humans getting too close to seals, especially during the pupping season, can cause great distress and harm and lead to pups starving if they become separated from their mothers. Volunteer Wardens from Friends of Horsey Seals protect the seals during the breeding season and offer visitors designated viewing areas a safe distance from the colony.
In addition, an increasing number of seals are turning up with life-threatening injuries after becoming trapped in flying rings, ropes and netting and other discarded materials. Friends of Horsey Seals provide a trained rescue team to help sick and injured seals throughout the year. The charity actively supports a campaign to ban the sale of flying rings in coastal areas and is part of a national group seeking to improve legal protection for seals.


“A friendly team who went above and beyond to ensure our trip to see the seals was perfect.”
The Marshall Family


11th May 2022
Jet Skiers Scare Seals
Two jet skiers, who rode at speed along the Horsey shoreline scaring more than 200 seals into the sea, have been reported to the police

8th May 2022
Tagged Seal
Hannah, one of our eagle-eyed wardens, spotted a seal on Horsey Beach with a yellow tag on its tail amongst a group of moulting seals.

19th March 2022
Friends of Horsey Seals Newsletter
We’re delighted to share our most recent Friends Newsletter available to our all Friends Supporters.
View More
Photo by Mark Reynolds
Donating to the Friends of Horsey Seals
Friends of Horsey Seals is a Registered Charity (Number 1169539). We are dedicated to protecting the grey seal colony at Horsey and Winterton from disturbance or harm. The charity relies totally on the continuing support of our donors and sponsors. We would simply not be able to carry on the work we do without this vital and generous support.
One-off or monthly donation
If you would like to make a one off donation, you can do so either by debit or credit card or through PayPal.
Or you can donate to us monthly through a Direct Debit.
Become a Friend
Our Friends membership scheme gives you exclusive access to news, information and event previews.
Sign up for a year’s membership for
your whole household here.
Donation by Post
Send a cheque by post made out to Friends of Horsey Seals. If you are a UK taxpayer you can opt to Gift Aid
your donation which will give us an extra 25 pence per pound.
Please download the form below, print, complete and sign and send it with your cheque to the address on
the form.
Message from our chairman…
Thank you for visiting our website. As we pass our tenth anniversary, I would like to reflect on the impact our work has had on the Atlantic Grey Seal colony at Horsey and Winterton.
Hopefully the recent restrictions may have given us a little time to reflect on the importance of our natural world. We all have a role to play in protecting the environment, not only for future generations but also for the long-term survival of our wildlife.
Despite the difficulties the pandemic caused, we managed to successfully achieve our aim to protect our growing colony of grey seals from unnecessary human disturbance. Recently the number of pups born at Horsey and Winterton exceeded a record 2,500. We helped to erect a highly successful chestnut paling fence at Winterton, funded by Natural England, which formed a viewing corridor to keep visitors and seals apart. Our FoHS seal rescue team, trained by the RSPCA, now responds to more than 140 calls outs to sick and injured seals a year.

I want to express my sincere thanks to our 350+ qualified volunteer seal wardens who turned out over the pupping season, whenever the restrictions allowed, and worked so hard in all weathers.
We also look forward to welcoming back those wardens who were shielding or protecting vulnerable people and were unable to volunteer this year.
As a small charity run by volunteers we rely on the generosity of local businesses and individuals for their donations to help fund what we do. So, sincere thanks to all our donors, including our Friends, whose annual subscriptions help us pay our way.
I also want to thank our partners for their help and support, including Natural England and the RSPCA East Winch Wildlife Centre, and in particular the proprietors of both the Horsey and Winterton car parks for allowing us free access throughout and their very generous donations at the start of the season.
Both common and grey seals are protected species and 40% of the world’s Atlantic Grey seal population lives around our UK shores. That is why it is important that we help them to thrive. We thank you for your interest.


© Friends of Horsey Seals 2021 • Registered Charity 1169539
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