VOLUNTEER WITH US
There are voluntary opportunities to suit everyone, whatever your skills, age or experience.
Click on the category below that interests you to find out about how you can help.
RESERVE MANAGEMENT
Laying a path at Cleaver Heath
Butterfly Park Warden
Heathland Management
Hedgelaying
Wildflower Planting
Scything
Join our volunteers
No experience necessary,
full training given
New Ferry Butterfly Park
Volunteers meet to manage the park on the second Sunday of the month from September to April. Activities may include hedgelaying, scything, path maintenance, coppicing and tree pruning. Training in the use of tools is given. Go along for the full day or join in and leave when you need to. See the Events Programme for the date of the next workday. If you would like more information, please email Paul Loughnane.
From the beginning of May until mid-September, the park is open to visitors every Sunday afternoon from 12 - 4 p.m. Wardens are needed in the park during this time to help show people round and share information about the reserve. New wardens are always placed with an experienced volunteer to learn what is required. Wardens are asked to do a 2 hour session, either 12 noon - 2pm or 2 - 4pm. You can do as many Sundays in the open season as you want to. If you would like to help with wardening, please email Linda Higginbottom. The more people on the rota the better!
Cleaver Heath
Volunteers meet the first Sunday of each month from September to March. For details of activities and to get involved, please email Reserve Manager, John McGaw.
EVENTS AND FUNDRAISING
Apple Day at Eastham Country Park
Help with events
and fundraising
Information and sales stalls
at local events
Children's craft activities
and games
Events and Fundraising
Co-ordinator needed
No experience necessary,
full training given
We take Wirral Wildlife’s information and sales stall to several local events throughout the year. Our presence on these occasions helps to increase our profile with the general public and raises valuable funds, which go towards safeguarding wildlife and habitats in our area.
Extra help is always appreciated, e.g. telling the people visiting the stall about Wirral Wildlife, selling items such as cards for fundraising, or supervising children's craft activities.
RECORDING
Recording invertebrates in Clatter Brook
Identify and record plants
and animals
Survey diverse habitats
across the Wirral
Help provide information for fighting planning applications
Become a recorder
Full training available with
our experienced recorders
For many years Wirral Wildlife (a part of Cheshire Wildlife Trust) has had an expert team of volunteers who record plants, birds and invertebrates. We also work with various specialist groups like the Wirral and Cheshire Badger Group and the Wirral Amphibian and Reptile Group.
We mainly survey on our seven Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) and over 70 Local Wildlife Sites (LWS) in Wirral. We have a rolling programme to do each site once in every 10 years. This was disrupted by Covid in 2020. We also undertake ad hoc surveys at various sites when people ask us for advice e.g. St Bridget's church in West Kirby and Port Sunlight Village Trust.
The data we collect is sent to local (rECOrd) and national (Natural England) databases as appropriate. This evidence of species distribution gets used for informing wildlife management, reviewing the impact of potential developments, and monitoring wildlife changes over time. We have just agreed a revised list of LWSs with the Wirral Borough Council Forward Planning team for the Local Plan.
Our work covers the whole Wirral peninsula between the River Dee and River Mersey. Most of the work is done by small groups surveying agreed sites during the Spring and Summer each year.
Some surveys are arranged so that new volunteers interested in learning about our local flora/fauna can gain some experience with us with a view to becoming regular ‘recorders’. We also provide some one day courses on grasses and wildflower identification and ecology.
Interested? Training is available and new recorders always go out with an experienced person.