Conservation Volunteer (Mobile Taskforce)

Canal & River Trust; Walsall; On-site; GBP 10,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

A nonprofit environmental organization is seeking volunteers for the Towpath Task Force in Walsall. Volunteers will engage in canal maintenance activities including litter clearance and vegetation management, while helping to enhance the local waterways. This role offers a chance to learn new skills, improve wellbeing, and meet like-minded individuals.

Benefits

Spending time outdoors

Learning new skills

Keeping fit

Meeting new and friendly people

Being part of a supportive team

Seeing improvements to your wellbeing

Qualifications

• Must be willing to engage with the public and maintain waterways.
• Participate in activities to improve the local environment.

Responsibilities

• Perform day-to-day maintenance of the canal.
• Engage in heritage restoration projects.
• Remove graffiti from public spaces.
• Enhance the environment through various tasks like hedgelaying.

Skills

Willing to learn new skills

Ability to travel to remote locations

Job description

Overview

To get to some of our more remote stretches of canal we are setting up a once-a-month mobile task force in two areas around Walsall – one to the north of the town and one to the south west.

As a member of our Towpath Task Force you will work with our very experienced lead volunteer and alongside Trust operatives managing vegetation (pruning, clearing, planting), clearing litter and general maintenance tasks. You will also act as our eyes and ears, reporting any issues that need to be dealt with by us.

Finally, as highly visible members of the team, our Towpath Taskforce Volunteers are the friendly, helpful face of the Canal and River Trust, engaging with the general public, making our waterways a more welcoming place to visit.

Sessions will run once a month, with the opportunity to join other sessions on a weekly basis. Our existing conservator volunteers rate this role highly for making friends, gently keeping fit and active and for general wellbeing.

Why we want you

Our Conservator volunteers help to maintain our network, carrying out important heritage and nature conservation activities as well as everyday tasks to improve the local environment such as painting or litter picking.

Our Conservator Volunteers help to tackle some of our toughest issues on the waterways, ensuring as much of the canal is accessible and well maintained as possible. Each year we face new challenges in managing our increasingly popular space and your support as a Conservator Volunteer will help to achieve our goals in keeping canals alive.

Whilst we have regular teams carrying out important tasks, some run on more of a ‘project’ basis to achieve specific activities (rebuilding a section of stone wall or carrying out some mass planting) meaning that different people can give their time in different ways.

What you will be doing

• Day to day maintenance
• Heritage restoration
• Graffiti Removal
• Environmental enhancements such as hedgelaying
• Creating new access points by building or improved steps or ramps
• When you register as a volunteer, we will ask you about any unspent convictions which you need to declare and risk assess these as needs be.

The skills you need

• Willing to learn new skills
• Ability to travel to remote locations

What\'s in it for you

• Spending time outdoors
• Learning new skills (some with external accreditation).
• Keeping fit
• Meeting new and friendly people
• Being part of a supportive team of colleagues and volunteers
• Seeing improvements to your wellbeing