Practical Conservation Day (April-mid June)

Thank you for your interest in getting involved with the Wild Ingleborough Project.

Between April and mid June we have a variety of practical tasks which can include drystone wall repairs, control of invasive plants and removal and maintenance of tree guards. The numbers of volunteers is restricted within these dates as with drystone wall repairs we need to give people proper tuition and extra help if needed as well as being restricted by the size of the gaps most of the time.

We've included the information below to give you an idea of what to expect on one of our Task Days. Please read this email before deciding to book a place and feel free to contact us with any further questions.

For more information about the Wild Ingleborough project check out our website: Wild Ingleborough.

Dates -

Please see the booking link below for our available dates between April and mid June. More dates will be added later in the year offering task days through until the end of June.

Time -

9:30am - 3:30pm

Location -

We work across the Wild Ingleborough project area which lies in the vicinity of Ribblehead (see the map on https://www.wildingleborough.com/visit).

We will email details regarding meeting points, parking and the planned activity for Task Days 2 days beforehand to allow us to check the weather forecast and adapt plans if needed.

Nearest Train Station -

Ribblehead Station.

We encourage our volunteers to use the trains where possible and many of our volunteers come to the practical conservation days via public transport. Many of the Task Day sites are not easily accessible from the train station but we are happy to pick you up from the station to get to site. If you would like to book on to one of our Task Days and are planning to arrive by train then please let us know so we can arrange picking you up if you are comfortable car sharing.

What to expect -

* You will be working on the side of, or around Ingleborough mountain, between 350-550m. Please be aware that there is on average between a 20-40 minute walk uphill to the work site, some of which may be across uneven terrain.

* The work itself will involve carrying tools, equipment, and personal belongings to the work site. This can be on sloping ground, close to small streams and on uneven, tussocky and wet ground.

* In clear weather you will be rewarded with beautiful views of the Yorkshire Dales! We may need to change or cancel a Task Day due to poor weather given the exposed nature of the work site. We will send out an email to those booked on if we need to do so.

* The task itself will be physical in nature and may involve manual handling such as lifting heavy stones, carrying, bending and/or digging, with the use of hand tools.

Facilities -

Please note there are no toilet facilities on site and mobile phone signal is very poor across the area.

Who can get involved -

* You don't need to have any experience as training is provided.

* You will need to be reasonably fit to access the furthest work sites.

* For young volunteers aged 16 and under a parent/responsible adult will need to attend your volunteering day with you. For 16 & 17-year-olds you can attend alone but we will need to ask for your parent/responsible adult to complete a Parental Consent Form. Please do let us know if you are a young person wanting to volunteer and we will be back in touch to get that set up for you.

What to bring -

* Plenty of layers of warm outdoor clothing that you don't mind getting muddy.

* In summer a hat and sun cream are essential as we will be working out in the open without shade. Waterproof layers which can also be used as a windproof layer. Working on the side of a mountain, especially in winter, can be very exposed and the weather conditions can often be different to the weather forecast and is always noticeably colder than the valleys.

* Steel toe-capped wellingtons or boots may be required for certain tasks, you'll be informed of this when we send out details ahead of the Task Day. We can provide steel toe-capped wellingtons if you let us know of your size requirement prior to the day, or please bring your own if you have them.

* Plenty of food and water for the day. There is no shop nearby.

* Tools, gloves and training will be provided by the team on the day.

Booking -

We limit places due to limited car parking space and/or the nature of the task, therefore pre-booking is essential. If you are unable to attend the Practical Conservation Day you are booked on to we would be really grateful if you could cancel your booking following the steps below at the earliest opportunity so that your place can be offered to someone on the waiting list. You can do this by 1. Log in to Eventbrite. 2. Go to Tickets. 3. Find the order you want refunded, then select 'Request a refund'.

Thank you for your interest in getting involved with the Wild Ingleborough Project, we hope to see you soon. If you have any further questions please feel free to get in touch - wild.ingleborough@ywt.org.uk

If you would like to support us in another way and donate to the project, please visit Wild Ingleborough | Yorkshire Wildlife Trust (ywt.org.uk).

Kind regards,

The Wild Ingleborough Team