Why did I decide to get involved with this particular project? I saw a post on the Lancashire Wildlife Trust’s Facebook page asking for members of the public to come along to a local woodland to “work on improving and creating new opportunities for the water vole.” I was intrigued and signed up to help. I saw it as a chance to spend a couple of days in nature doing something useful, which indeed it was. But as it turns out, that was only part of the reason I ended up enjoying myself so much. 

On the first day, I met staff and volunteers from Forestry England and Lancashire Wildlife Trust at Barlow’s Wood in Bickershaw, Wigan. Both parties are working together as part of the Wigan Greenheart Landscape Recovery Scheme, which aims to expand and improve habitats for endangered species and get local people involved in conservation efforts. After a safety briefing and a tool talk, including how to use loppers, hand saws and rather terrifyingly-named “slashers”, we set about clearing lots of overgrown vegetation from the sides of a stream in a wooded area.

Later, we ventured further downstream to see some water vole burrows. Whilst none of the adorable creatures made an appearance, we did spot some beautiful fungi in the surrounding woodland.

By the end of the day, I felt a huge sense of achievement and drove home with a big smile on my face. The work had been tough but very enjoyable; there’s something incredibly satisfying about getting out in nature and absorbing yourself in manual tasks with likeminded people.

Cutting through chest-high grasses and snaggly brambles is tiring but immensely gratifying work, and it wasn’t long before we’d cleared a number of areas near the stream. It’s important not to clear too much, however, so we left plenty of tussocks and longer patches to provide protection from predators.

After lunch, Valentina and Karl Horne, a Project Officer from Lancashire Wildlife Trust, led the group around the various ponds, meadows and heathland areas of Barlow’s Wood, discussing the many improvement projects that are on the cards over the coming years. This relatively small patch of land contains a wide variety of different habitat types and is therefore an incredibly important location for conservation, redevelopment and education. I feel privileged to have contributed in some small way to the improvement of this area, and I’m excited by the prospect of joining more projects there in the future.

In summary, my experience volunteering for water voles has been a fantastic one. I thoroughly enjoyed getting involved as a community volunteer and have signed up with both Lancashire Wildlife Trust and Forestry England to join more projects like this.

If you’re interested in joining local volunteering efforts, keep an eye on the social media pages of your favourite wildlife charities or visit their websites for volunteering opportunities. I guarantee you won’t regret it, and I strongly suspect you’ll enjoy yourself as much as I have!