Turn your time into a force for nature

Looking for a rewarding way to spend your time this year? Volunteering for the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) is a great way to meet new people, enjoy the outdoors, and make a real difference for local wildlife.

Whether you prefer welcoming visitors, getting hands on with conservation, or lending practical skills behind the scenes, there's a role to suit you - and every hour you give helps protect and enhance the Nature Discovery Centre for people and wildlife alike.

There are so many ways to get involved

Visitor Centre Volunteer Rover

Be a friendly presence out on the reserve, chatting to visitors as they explore, and helping them get the most from their visit. You'll play a key role in creating a welcoming, informative experience while inspiring people to care about nature.

Retail and Information Volunteer

As the first point of contact in the visitor centre, you'll greet visitors, share information about the reserve, and support retail sales that directly fund conservation work. It's a sociable, rewarding role at the heart of the conservation community.

Facilities Maintenance Volunteer

Put your practical skills to good use by helping maintain and improve buildings, paths, and facilities. Your support helps BBOWT look after its site sustainably, ensuring it remains safe, welcoming, and fit for the future - all while making the most of limited charitable resources.

Conservation Volunteer

Get hands-on with nature recovery. From habitat management to seasonal conservation tasks, you'll work outdoors with a friendly, supportive team of like-minded volunteers, directly helping wildlife to thrive.

BBOWT is the only voluntary organisation in the region concerned with all aspects of nature conservation. They give wildlife a helping hand to ensure it thrives in their three counties. As well as managing nature reserves, this includes monitoring species and running special projects to support declining species like water voles and threatened habitats such as chalk grassland.

If you'd like to get involved and make a positive difference for nature on your doorstep, email volunteering@bbowt.org.uk to find out more.

For opportunities to get involved elsewhere in West Berkshire, try the conservation work party at Padworth Common or help out at an event of your choice as an Events Assistant Volunteer. Find out more about both of these at bbowt.org.uk/volunteering

Kevin Shaw, one of the conservation volunteers, says,

"I thoroughly enjoy volunteering at the Nature Discovery Centre. It gets me out of the house, and I enjoy working with my fellow volunteers. We've recently been creating a new dead-hedge and brush-piles in the woodland hide area, which has attracted loads of birds to the feeders."