Voluntary hours add up to huge wildlife benefits

Potteric Carr Nature Reserve near Doncaster, one of the 97 nature reserves looked after by Yorkshire Wildlife Trust and its hundreds of volunteers. Pic: Matthew Roberts.

Green-fingered Yorkshire folk spent some 53,775 hours as volunteers at some of Yorkshire's most precious wildlife spots last year.

The figure charts the input from members of public who have given up their time to help protect, educate and raise awareness of the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s nature reserves across the region.

The charity is celebrating the important role of its 900 volunteers, who support conservation work across 97 nature reserves in Yorkshire, to mark national Volunteers Week.

So many hours of dedication to the natural world makes a huge difference to wildlife conservation in Yorkshire, according to Jennifer Few, the Trust’s volunteering development officer.

She said: “I’m truly thankful for all the hard work and effort Yorkshire Wildlife Trust volunteers make year on year.

“Across 2015 we recorded over 53,775 hours of volunteering which is truly staggering. Be it an hour or more everything counts and once combined can make a huge difference to wildlife conservation here in Yorkshire.”

One local volunteer is Harrogate-based Rachel Green, who works in the banking industry but supports five nature reserves in her spare time.

She said: “I love the outdoors and wanted to do something completely different to my paid job. I have gained a greater knowledge of birds, insects and wildflowers, and the countryside art of hedge-laying - the Yorkshire way of course.”

There is currently a range of volunteering opportunities available with Yorkshire Wildlife Trust. For more details, see the charity’s website.