“Any hedgehog that is out during the day is in all likelihood in need of help. They are nocturnal, and they will only be out during the day in a desperate attempt to get more food and water, so basically if they are starving and/ or dehydrated/ sick. A hog like that may be lying down or staggering about. They do not ‘sunbathe’.

The best course of action is to take hold of it (in this state, they won’t probably even spike up, and are extremely unlikely to bite, but a bit of cloth is an excellent barrier in any case), put it in a cardboard box somewhere quiet and secure, provide some water and get in touch with a local rescue or a vet. Wash your hands after as they do carry parasites.

The only exception from this are nursing mums, but they will be walking briskly and with purpose – sometimes they just need a break from the kids!

The more people know about this, the more we can help this iconic species that was in very sharp decline; for the first time they started to recover in urban areas (!) basically because people’s awareness has improved on how to lend them a helping hand so it’s all down to efforts of people like you and me.”