Volunteering across the Peak District

Our lovely volunteers that helped to engage and inspire our visitors on the BE KINDER trail

Our volunteers are vital to the work you see happening across the Peak District areas. Our incredible teams of volunteers bring with them a whole host of skills, knowledge and a dedicated passion for people, places and the environment.

What do our volunteers do?

Volunteers across the Peak District take on a variety of roles and often volunteer in lots of different locations. Some of the roles include educational support, conservation work, gardeners and event assistance, to name but a few. Volunteers not only assist in the running and upkeep of our unique places across the Peaks but also play a key role in helping our visitors to build deeper connections to the Peak District landscape. 

Volunteers surveying the bees at Ilam Park
Volunteers survey the bees at Ilam Park
Volunteers surveying the bees at Ilam Park

Reasons to volunteer 

People volunteer across the Peak District for different reasons; to learn new skills, to discover or build a new community of people, learn more about a particular area or to gain experience for future employment. Some volunteers are with us every week whilst some a few times a year. Both are equally valuable to us. Volunteers can often work across all of our sites or depending on where they live, choose to be based at just one area of the Peak District. Our three different areas:

  • Ilam Park, Dovedale and the White Peak
  • Kinder, Edale and the Dark Peak
  • Longshaw, Burbage and Eastern Moors

Our volunteering roles are very dependant on the needs of our properties across the Peak District and our conservation projects, so there may be times throughout the year that we are unable to offer any opportunities. In this instance we encourage people to head to our central National Trust volunteering site where you can enter your postcode and view opportunities within a 20 mile radius to where you live.

With the Peak District National Park being such a vast area, it takes many different organisations to help look after it, so during times where we are unable to offer opportunities, it may be that our partner organisations/local conservation charities have projects they need some extra help with. Please visit Eastern Moors, Peak District National Park, Moors for the Future, Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust and Derbyshire Wildlife Trust.

Volunteers supporting the BE KINDER project at Edale Country Day
Volunteers supporting the BE KINDER project at Edale Country Day
Volunteers supporting the BE KINDER project at Edale Country Day

 

What opportunities are available to me?

Working holidays

Working holidays provide a great way to learn new skills, help our work, see new places and have fun with like-minded people. There are plenty to choose from in the Peak District, visit our Working Holiday website for more information.

Join a group

Thinking about volunteering and want to be part of a regular group? The Mudlarks National Trust volunteer group is a voluntary association of National Trust members and volunteers founded in 1990. 

Muck in Days

Muck-In Days are a great way to get involved at Longshaw and the Eastern Moors. Rangers, staff, volunteers and families join up to tackle important conservation tasks, while connecting and sharing knowledge.

Muck-In Days are 10am-12.30pm every second Sunday of the month. They're free and there's no need to book - just bring yourself and some suitable clothing and footwear. For more information please visit our What's On section.

Letting the River Dove flow - volunteers and staff working on the restoration project
Letting the River Dove flow - volunteers and staff working on the restoration project
Letting the River Dove flow - volunteers and staff working on the restoration project

If you would like more information or to discuss any volunteering opportunities then please get in touch with our very friendly Volunteer and Community Involvement Manager for the Peak District, by emailing: deborah.webster@nationaltrust.org.uk. We look forward to hearing from you.