Come and explore Rainham Marshes with one of our guides, as we take you on a wonderful wildlife walk around the marshes. Every season sees a different cast of wildlife awaits you!

Rainham Marshes is an important area for wildlife, and a great place for visitors all year round - you can expect to see breeding wading birds and a variety of invertebrates in spring and summer. Also look out for lapwings, redshanks, wheatears…

We have some fun activities for all the family at Rainham Marshes during the half term

to book please visit 

Rainham Marshes (rspb.org.uk)

We apologise for the ongoing closure of the northern boardwalk. The decision to close was made in order to keep visitors safe, as the boardwalk has reached the end of its lifespan. A new Project Manager has now joined the team at Rainham and we are considering several options to reopening the site fully. We understand that the closure may cause frustration and we apologise that we cannot yet give a date for reopening…

Volunteering opportunities available

We have vacancies for new volunteers in multiple roles!

Do you want to be part of a great team, learn new skills and be part of a great charity? if you do then please speak to a member of staff or contact Kirsty.scott@rspb.org.uk

We are pleased to be starting a new weekend work party! If you would like to help nature and don’t mind some physical work, then this work party might be for you. You will get to meet new people, help nature and have go home knowing you helped nature.

If you are interested, please register your interest by following the link.

https://volunteer.rspb.org.uk/opportunities/36723-practical-reserve-work-rainham-marshes…

From Monday 26th of October the shop will be closed. We are currently in the process of relocating the shop upstairs in the visitor centre. We are expecting the work to take 4 days. We will update when the shop move has been complete.

The café will be closed on Monday 26th of October for maintenance, it will re-open the following day.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused.

As a mark of respect to our patron Queen Elizabeth Rainham marshes will be closed on Monday 19th September.  Our thoughts are with the royal family on the day of the Queens funeral.

Rainham marshes will reopen on Tuesday 20th September. We appreciate your patience and understanding

In honour of  our beautiful Queen Elizabeth .Our wildlife explorers group created this magnificent bug habitat. Named Bugingham palace. come and see it in the picnic area at the reserve 

The Highlight of August was the wryneck ,Plenty of visitors had the pleasure of seeing the wryneck along with some great images being taken.

We have had two spoonbill this month including the yellow flagged Dutch spoonbill.

There has been a great show of brightly coloured yellow wag tails

Wader numbers have not been great this month two Turnstone Spotted, Redshank and a Wood Sandpiper was the highlights.

The cattle…

Hi Everyone,

Woweee well July has been the hottest month RSPB Rainham Marshes has ever experienced. As I am sure you must be aware this has affected the Marshes. However we have survived one severe heatwave, and there may be more yet to come this year. It’s worth reflecting how fortunate we are to have been unscathed by the Wennington fire which blazed just a stone’s throw away from the reserve. Our thoughts go out to…

We are holding an optics demonstration weekend this weekend, Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th of July.

Further reductions in the price of selected RSPB spotting scopes.

• 82 HD scope with 25-50 zoom eyepiece, was originally £1299, now £800
• Harrier 80 ED scope with fixed 35x eyepiece was £449, now £249
• Harrier 60 ED scope with fixed 26x eyepiece was £399 now £199.
• Avocet 80 with 20-60x…

June Sightings Board:

June Highlights!

• Sanderling (2 June)
• Spoonbill x2 (4/5 June)
• Greenshank (4/5, 11 June)
• Grasshopper Warbler (5 June)
• Spotted Flycatcher (seen on and off throughout the month)
• Cuckoo (seen and heard most of the month)
• Little Ringed Plover (4/5, 8/9, 29 June)
• Great White Egret (10/11, 19 June)
• Little Egret (present most of the month, but on 18 June there were around 50 across the reserve with a majority…

Hello everyone!

Well Rainham has had some very mixed weather throughout the last 5 weeks, a spectacular storm was enjoyed from the Visitor Centre mid April, during which a gorgeous adult spoonbill dropped out of the sky and into the reserve, immediately dipping his spoon in to feed and entertain us storm watchers. I must admit that the fantastic marsh landscape never fails to impress me, whatever the weather it presents…

RSPB Rainham Marshes will be holding an Optics Demonstration Weekend from

10:30 am on Saturday 16^th.to 4am Monday 18^th.

Big reductions on older model RSPB Spotting Scopes.

Older Model RSPB Harrier scopes reduced by £150.

Harrier 80 with 20-60 zoom eyepiece reduced from £499 to £349. Only one left.

Harrier 80 with 35x fixed eyepiece reduced from £449 to £299. Only two left.

Harrier 65 with…

It has been a very strange winter at RSPB Rainham Marshes with almost no frost or icy snap and not a single snowflake.  The wind has been stuck in the west for seems like months and the wintering birdlife reflects that.  Duck numbers have been lower than usual as most dabbling species have not needed to escape a hard eastern European winter and head west across the North Sea.  There are still plenty around at he moment and…

Morning all... RSPBRainham is open as normal today but due to staff illness there will no cafe available. Apologies.

Bit of a high tide going on at the moment here on the Thames.  Nothing too unusual for here but the flood barriers are all down along the river and now only the tops of the reeds on the foreshore are showing from the centre and the water is topping over the lower wall on The Garrison but everything is ok and nothing is getting flooded!

All the reed is now under water

Victorian Wall under water

Teal and mallard busy feeding…

Work continues to re-vamp the old raised beds in the Wildlife Garden at RSPB Rainham Marshes and Doug Hutson, one of our volunteers, rescued & carefully rehomed 48 smooth newts of various ages in a new hibernaculum that were discovered under the rotting timbers so do take care out in the garden whilst tidying up this weekend! 

The Photographic Hide has had a spruce up and is now up and ready for the autumn and winter season.

The team have worked hard to improve the views and make sure the wonderful reflection pool is looking good.

A bean bag has been left down there for use in the hide but please do hang it back up after use.

When: hiring available during opening hours if area not in use with schools

Opening times: Full day (9.45 am-4.15…