VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER

When asked

to justify their

craft, many

historians will

tell you that, by

examining the

past, we can

learn how to

go forward.

This is certainly

true of the

history of

the Trust’s former chief executive,

Mike Townsend, has produced a detailed

history.This article is a summary of some

of the highlights.

In 1972, KennethWatkins, a retired engineer

and accomplished wildlife photographer

and filmmaker, was all too aware of the

threats faced by our native woods. At the

time there was a major drive to increase

agricultural production leading to the

grubbing out of hedgerows and clearing of

woodland. Numerous native ancient woods

were felled and replanted with non-native

conifer plantations.

And so he founded theWoodland Trust.

The founding trustees detailed their

organisation’s purpose as to ‘conserve, restore

and re-establish trees and in particular

broadleaved trees, plants and all forms of

wildlife in the UK and thereby to secure and

enhance the enjoyment of the public of the

natural environment of those territories’.

In those early days, activity was mainly

focused on protecting woods by acquiring

them, and the first wood on the list was

AvonWood in Kenneth’s native Devon.

The purchase saved the wood from certain

clear felling and conversion into a conifer

plantation. AvonWood is still owned by the

Woodland Trust today.

Mike’s history says of the AvonWood:

‘Kenneth Watkins personally bought Bedlime

Wood in the parish of Woodleigh from the

trustees of William Froude. Bedlime Wood

remained broadleaved, although much of the Avon

Valley had been felled for planting conifers.

‘Fundraising began, and in August 1973 the

Woodland Trust bought Dartshill Copse adjoining

Bedlime,Titcombe Wood and Woodleigh Wood.

In the same month Kenneth Watkins transferred

Wedd's Copse and Bedlime Wood to the

Woodland Trust's – continued on page 8

Winter 2009

woodlandtrust.org.uk/volunteering

THE WOODLANDTRUST:A HISTORY

In its 37 years, theWoodland Trust hasevolved from the vision ofone man to become oneof the UK’s leading andmost respected charities.The story of how it gotthere makes fascinatingreading. SallyanneFlemons reports

INSIDE

News 2 & 16

And the winner is...

A date at No 10

Learning 3

Aiming for the record books

Outdoor classroom

Ancient trees 4

50,000 ancient trees logged

Tre/e-learning

In the woods 6

Heartwood update

Tree planters wanted

The WoodlandTrust:a history 8

Out of the woods 10

Call for media volunteers

Not on our watch

Speakers 12

Trees not a nuisance

Photographers 13

Can you fill the gaps?

New library launches

What’s new? 14

New project – VisitWoods

Woodwatch grants

WTPL/MikeLewis

Woodland Trust founder,Kenneth Watkins

Category winners

Ann Street – Scotland

A highly effective campaigner who alsohelped with many tree planting events.

Peter Archdale – Northern Ireland

Peter has been a highly dedicated volunteerfor the Ancient Tree Hunt in the Province andworked hard to support the Northern Irelandteam, helping to raise the profile of ancienttrees.

Les Wilkins –Wales

A mentor and coach for other volunteerverifiers, Les has verified no less than 68ancient trees himself – a record for Wales.

Pam Farley – Eastern England

A champion for Heartwood. See page 7and the latest issue of Broadleaf for thelowdown on Pam.

George French – North East England

George has been looking after Whittle Denein Ovingham, Northumberland, for manyyears, acting as its eyes and ears andhelping to keep it an inviting place.

David Guiterman – SouthWest England

Another highly vigilant Volunteer Warden,David takes good care of Milltown andllntyan Woods in Cornwall.

DrAnne Phillips – NorthWest England

Anne is an extremely prolific and skilled

phenology recorder who has helped ourNature’s Calendar project immeasurably.

David Rodway – Photographer

David has provided us with somewonderful images for the Woodland TrustPicture Library.

Peter Downey – Speaker

A speaker with an infectious enthusiasm, Peterhas travelled far and wide for the cause.

Martin Boiling – Project

Martin has used his considerableexperience and skills to support and guidethe CEO and management team duringthe strategic review process.

Tony Burgoyne – Ancient Tree Hunt

As the lead volunteer verifier for the NorthEast,Tony has been an excellent advocatefor the Ancient Tree Hunt, including throughthe media and schools.

The Abbey GroveVolunteers –Group

For eight years, the group has cared forAbbey Grove Wood, carrying out practicalwork and surveying, ensuring that its wildlifecan thrive.

Dear friends

We can’t believe a year has gone bysince we last sent you aVolunteerNewsletter.

And it seems even more unbelievablethat the WoodlandTrust itself has nowbeen in existence for 37 years. Formerchief executive, MikeTownsend, haswritten a fascinating history of theWoodlandTrust and we are sharinghighlights with you in this issue.

We hope you will find it inspirational,both in the way it shows how robust ourvalues have always been, and how wehave also always embraced change togreat effect.

In a dynamic world where nothingstands still, we must evolve to be aseffective as possible in saving treesand woods. Climate change has shownus how even nature is constantly onthe move.

So one of the roles of this newsletter isto explain any changes that arehappening at the WoodlandTrust so thatour valued volunteers (including you!)are kept informed of what is changingand why.

We hope you enjoy this issue and pleasedo get in touch if you have any questionsor contributions.

Best wishes

The volunteers team

2 email: volunteers@woodlandtrust.org.uk tel: 01476 581111

NEWSAnd the winner is…TheWoodland Trust Volunteer of theYear results are now out. Selecting winnersfrom such a dedicated and talented bunch was no easy job. But after a lot ofdeliberation we are really pleased to announce the results.

The overall winner receives theWatkins Memorial Medal, named after ourfounder, KennethWatkins.

Volunteer of theYear 2009Stephen Waters

Stephen, pictured left receiving the award from Huw Iranca-Davies, joined the ancient tree hunt tem in 2007. Since thenhe has verified 611 ancient tree records, recorded 311 trees,travelled around the country forWoodlandTrust events andprovided training and inspiration to others. NikkiWilliams,project manager for the Ancient Tree Hunt said: ‘He is a starwho has really shone for the project this year. He provided the

most amazing support to me and I am very proud to work with him.’

From left to right: Merle Dekanski, Carl Hughes andKaren Lifford

WTPL/CaroleSutton

Well doneto you all.

LEARNINGThe Woodland Trust sees engaging adults and children as a vital part of its work.

Our aim is to nurture an enduring appreciation of trees and woods.Here are just some of the ways volunteers are helping us to achieve this.

VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER 3

This winter, volunteers will be helping the Trust attempt to break a tree-planting world record. On Saturday 5 December,

coinciding with National TreeWeek, we will join other BBC Breathing Places partners across the UK to plant the most number

of trees in one hour. 100 volunteers at both Heartwood Forest and Hainault Forest will attempt to plant in excess of 20,000

trees at each site. Starting at 11am, they’ll certainly have earned their lunch.

To find out how you can join in the fun visit: bbc.co.uk/breathingplaces/treeoclock/

Aiming for the record books

OBE forSpringwatcherCongratulations to Jean Combes who received an OBE fromthe Queen early in 2009 for her invaluable contribution to thescience of phenology.

Jean is amongst thousands of volunteers who send in records ofseasonal change to Nature’s Calendar each year. The data,stored on the UK Phenology Network database, is run by theTrust in partnership with the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.

Through the dedication of people like Jean, we can chart hownatural events are being affected by the changing climate.

Dr KateLewthwaite, managerof the UKPhenology Network,said: ‘Jean’s records oftrees coming into leafsince 1947 representthe only long termrecords of tree leafingin the UK.As far aswe know it is the longestphenological record made by a single person anywhere in the world.’

Interested in becoming a volunteer recorder?Visit: naturescalendar.org.uk

Surprisingly, many childrenhave never visited their localwood either for adventurousplay or as part of their formallearning, even though theopportunity might be right ontheir doorstep.

Volunteer John Fleetwood hasbeen helping the Trust addressthis sad situation, byencouraging young people inNorfolk to enjoy, learn fromand be inspired by their wood.

With support from theHeritage Lottery Fund, apilot project is underway inKing’s Lynn working inpartnership with teachers andpupils from Reffley PrimarySchool. The school is lucky tohave a fantastic Trust woodnearby and the aim is to

unlock its potential as anoutdoor classroom.

To set the project going, Johnlaid on an induction day forthe school. A class of nineand 10-year-olds and theirteachers were introduced tothe many things woodlandhas to offer, and then given aguided walk of Reffley Wood.

...MORE SCHOOLSACROSS THE UK WILLENJOY HANDS-ONLEARNING IN AWOOD OR PARKNEAR THEM

John provided the perfectplatform from which to beginthe project. From this pilot itis hoped that more schoolsacross the UK will enjoy

hands-on learning in a woodor park near them.

During the summer and intothis autumn the Trust’slearning programme isbenefiting from the skills andexperience of another John.John Peatfield, a former headteacher and current staffmember of the University ofCumbria, is kindly dedicatingpart of his sabbatical tohelping us develop andtest new approaches to

woodland learning.

John’s considerable experiencein the education sectorcombined with an unrelentingenthusiasm for woods andtrees (he’s a life member)makes him a huge asset.

With John’s continued helpas a volunteer, it is hoped aground-breaking woodlandlearning conference canbe staged during spring 2010 inconjunction with the university.

The outdoor classroom

Jean Combes

A life-long understanding of nature

GrahamFudger

WTPL/JanetW

att

4 email: volunteers@woodlandtrust.org.uk tel: 01476 581111

Don’t worry – they’ve not been felled! In fact we’ve not lost50,000 of our most precious natural assets; you might actuallysay we’ve found them!

Yes, the good news is the volunteers and partners working onthe Ancient Tree Hunt have now logged 50,000 trees onto thedatabase, helping our work to protect these gems of ournatural heritage.

In fact the only things being cut down to size are the hunt’stargets. NikkiWilliams,ATH’s project manager, reports that:

• the 50,000 trees loggedputs the hunt well ontarget for this stage ofthe project;

• the 70-plus partnersincluding the NationalTrust, ForestryCommission,TreeCouncil,WildlifeTrusts and localgroups have eclipsedthe hunt’s target ofjust 15 partners, and

• the 46,500 people involvedin the hunt have already smashed its target of40,000 people by 2011!

77,000 people have now registered on the hunt’s website torecord trees, and when you add in those working via thehunt’s partners, there are 155,500 people now recording theseprized natural assets.

Here’s more good news – the Ancient Tree Hunt hasbeen nominated for a National Lottery award for BestEnvironment Project.

50,000 ancient trees ‘logged’

ANCIENT TREESWe’ve teamed up with the Ancient Tree Forum to celebrate ancient trees

and do all we can to conserve them. Read here about what’s happening thenjoin the discussion forum by logging onto

www.ancient-tree-forum.org.uk or AncientTreeHunt.org.uk

PhilLockwood

The giant Shugborough Yew in Staffordshiore

WTPL/KenLeslie

Page edited by Phil Marshall.

VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER 5

The term e-learning meansusing electronic material andsystems to provide teachingand training; it’s popular,partly because it provides anopportunity to study orundergo training withouthaving to travel to a meetingor class.

The Ancient Tree Hunt isbenefiting from this modernapproach.Web-conferencingnow means that volunteerverifiers can receivenotification of trainingsessions and then watchremotely as Kath Owen,ATF’ssenior verifier, demonstrateshow to use the system.Theycan ask questions and seek

additional help, but it doesn’tmatter if they’re in Scotland,the Isle of Wight or evenJersey at the time.

Each volunteer receivessupporting material and thenmeets up with an existingverifier for field training.

THE PROJECT ISABOUT BUILDINGSKILLS ANDKNOWLEDGE

Judy Dowling from Fife, thefirst volunteer to use theweb-conference training,reports that it was verydetailed, informative but easyto follow. She says: ‘The mainbenefit of web conferencing

was being able to discussthings as we went along, bitby bit, so if there wasanything I didn't understand,I asked straight away.’

A dozen volunteers have nowfollowed in Judy’s footsteps.For Kevin Coleman fromOxfordshire, the benefits areclear: ‘Time, cost andinconvenience are the threewords that sum up trainingcourses to me, so it was arefreshing change to dosome training via a computerand a telephone on a one-to-one basis.’

Howard Leader from Ipswichagrees. ‘There was no travellinginvolved, saving time, stress and

money. I felt, as a consequence,that all of the time spent on theexercise was productive. It waseasy to watch the trainernavigate through the pages.Afterwards, I could go over theprocesses for as long as Iwanted, while it was still fresh inmy mind.’

Kath is pleased with progress:‘The project is about buildingskills and knowledge. It’s a greatway of reaching new volunteerswho otherwise couldn’t get to atraining session.’

So, don’t let location put youoff. Join the tre/e-team andtraining will come to youwherever you are!

Tre/e-learning?

Are you a ‘half-full or half-empty glass’ kind of person? If you’re

the latter, you may well be thinking: this is the bit where they

stump up the bad news.

Well, the hunt does believe there’s another 50,000 trees out

there still to be logged. But bad news? No, far from it!

DON’T PRESUME THE HUNT IS ONLYINTERESTED IN NATIVE TREES...NON-NATIVE

TREES NEED LOGGING TOO

This provides a great opportunity for even more people to get

involved, for even more partners to join the hunt and of course

for even more of the elder statesmen of our natural heritage to

be recognised for their contribution to our environment.

They’re to be found all around us, not just in the countryside,

not just in forests and woods, butin our cities and towns too, forexample in urban parks. So, look inyour local area, on your way towork, college or the shops.And don’t presume the hunt isonly interested in trees nativeto Britain; non-native trees needlogging too.

Farmers and landowners can also play a significantrole.The hunt respects private property and people’s privacy,and is very happy to log trees without making the details public.So, please get in touch if you’ve a hidden gem on your land.

For all you need to know to join or help the hunt, visitAncientTreeHunt.org.uk

TheAncient Tree Hunt has 130 volunteer verifiers, who check the tree records submitted for inclusion on the database.Because they’re rooted across the country, they only meet up occasionally and usually communicate via email and telephone,effectively working and networking as an e-team (or should that be a tre/e-team?).

The verifiers obtain online the details of the logged trees that need checking in their areaand they submit information back online.

Now, thanks to the introduction of BT web-conferencing, existing and new verifiers canlink up much more easily. Using the new technology, they can access help and advice, anduse it to send through information and photos.They also receive a weekly round-up,courtesy of an e-newsletter, and participate in regular conference call meetings.

The E-team

A ‘half-full’ database?

Name:John Minns

Volunteer role:Promoting ElmsteadWood, Essex

Location:East Anglia

Action: Distribute leaflets to businesses, shops, housesand libraries.

I contact Parish Councils, attend their meetings and explainWoodland Trust plans for creating new woodland in theirarea, attend community events and meetings, contactmembers of local wildlife societies.

My wife says if five people stand still for 10 seconds in agroup I am liable to start asking for donations for theElmsteadWood! I have a good contact with the local pressand we have had three ½ page articles from this.

I have also formed links with our local MP who, whenasked, attends meetings on the proposed site of the woodthis almost always guarantees press coverage.

What inspires me about woodland In my ruralvillage school in the 50s, lessons included nature walks andour playground was a large meadow with a stream.Therewere hedgerows, trees to climb, ponds to dip. I learntabout all aspects of nature, from moths to butterflies andstream life to birds, trees and woodland and was totallyinspired by it all. I used to disappear all day exploring fieldand woods with my friend.

My main great love was woodland, from the fresh greenshoots of spring through to the stark skeleton beauty oftrees clad in winter frosts. It has been a joy to me for solong and will always be so.

6 email: volunteers@woodlandtrust.org.uk tel: 01476 581111

IN THE WWho needs an excuse to spend more time in the woods? Our w

Dead-hedgingvolunteers let in lightLocal volunteers have been helping theWoodland Trust inWhittle Dene, a picturesque 19 hectare wood in Ovingham,

Northumberland.

Funding from SITA Trust’s Enriching Nature programme has

enabled coppicing to take place, opening up the woodland

canopy and allowing more light to the woodland floor.

On 28 March a group of local people helped protect the

coppice stools using a technique called dead hedging.

Using brash from the wood, lengths of material are placed in

the ground around the coppice stool to protect the new

growth from browsing deer. Around 25 local people came

out on the day despite the wet weather.

Whittle Dene is ancient woodland and has existed as

broadleaved woodland alongside theWhittle Burn for at least

400 years. It was originally coppiced in the mid 1850s to

provide fuel to heat water forWhittle Mill, a corn mill at the

southern end of the wood.

We are looking for volunteers to help withcommunity events at our new flagship site

BurntolletWood in the FaughanValley, near theCity of Londonderry, Northern Ireland.

We want to plant 36,000 native trees over the next fewyears and exciting opportunities for volunteers will startin the autumn, with a wide range of events for all agesplanned.We need your help to manage fun tree planting

events for schools and local communities.No experience is necessary but be prepared to

get your hands dirty!

So if you fancy helping out at events whether it’shelping children plant trees, directing traffic, welcoming

groups to the wood or just keeping an eye onwhat’s happening in the wood please call:

Michelle McCaughtry on 02891 275787 or emailmichellemccaughtry@woodlandtrust.org.uk

Tree planters wantedFaughanValley, Northern Ireland

Close up

WTPL/DouglasBlanks

John shows Bernard Jenkin MP around Elmstead

Great progress has beenmade in transformingHeartwood Forest inHertfordshire into the largestcontinuous native woodland inEngland. And volunteers areplaying a huge part.

The surveyAll 347 hectares (858 acres) have been

subject to a survey and volunteer

experts have helped us log the wildlife

that already lives there. This is important

because it shows the site is already a

haven for wildlife, and we hope it will

also demonstrate how the wildlife

flourishes as it transforms into

woodland. And, of course it gives us

information on how best to sensitively

manage the site.

We are also extremely excited to learn

more about the site’s history –archaeologists discovered evidence fromRoman and Bronze Age occupation.

And more…15 schools had a great time at discoveryevents in Langley Wood. AndEnvironment Minister, Huw Iranca-Davies was hugely impressed when hevisited the site. Now we’re preparing thearea for planting and a further 70hectares is opening to the public.

VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER 7

WOODSwood based volunteers care for our woods in many, varied ways.

Name:Pam Farley

Previousoccupation:PE teacherAction:Despite nearing her80s, Pam hasboundless energyand channels it into

helping theWoodland Trust in many ways. She has beenvolunteering for us for years and is now helping to makeHeartwood into a great success. Pam heads up the St Albanssupport group, raises money for theWoodland Trust,gives around two talks a week about our work and runsinspirational guided walks.

A more detailed profile of Pam can be foundin our member’s magazine, Broadleaf.

Vo l u n t e e rs p o t l i g h t

How to get involvedPlanting trees is one of the most fulfilling experiences you willever have.We are putting around 600,000 into the ground atHeartwood. Come along to help out and you can play yourpart in creating this vast natural haven.

We also need volunteers to:

• Lead guided walks Share your passion for Heartwood Forestand for woodland by leading guided walks around the site.

• Take photographs Take photos of your favourite spotsand watch them change over the seasons and the years.

• Record the wildlife Log when the bluebells first raisetheir heads, what kinds of butterflies are making use of thesite and how many nesting birds you can spot.

• Check the rabbit-proof fencing There will be miles ofrabbit-proof fencing protecting our young sapling trees. Helpus by walking the boundaries and letting us know where ithas been breached.

• Prepare and maintain tree planting areas A greatopportunity to get stuck into the practical stuff.

To find out more about volunteering at Heartwood Forest visitwoodlandtrust.org.uk/volunteers-heartwood

StuartLeech

WTPL/PaulO’Conner

Bluebells at Heartwood Forest

Volunteers ♥ Heartwood

8 email: volunteers@woodlandtrust.org.uk tel: 01476 581111

THE WOODLAND TRUST:Continued from front cover

Woods for peopleIt was important toKenneth that thosewoods were openand accessible to all– even non-payingmembers. This is aphilosophy still heldby the WoodlandTrust today withmany projectsfocussed aroundsaving woods byinspiring people(see article onVisitWoods,page 14).

In later years, theseprojects wereundertaken on a huge scale thanks to new sources of funding(such as the lottery) and a great deal of vision.

This included Woods onYour Doorstep which led to thecreation of over 250 woods close to population centres all overthe UK. And Tree For All, which has already led to over onemillion children planting trees and is aiming for a million more.

ownership. By the end of 1973 the Trust had

around 40 hectares in the Avon Valley.’

Far and wideAlthough the Trust started out in the

South Western corner of England, over

the years its presence all over the UK

has become strong. The Trust’s first

wood acquired in Wales was Coed

Lletywalter, an ancient woodland in the

Snowdonia National Park.

THE BEST WAY TO CONSERVEWOODS WAS NOT JUST TOFOCUS ON NATURE RESERVES,BUT TO WORK WITH OTHERS

TO MANAGE ENTIRELANDSCAPES

The first in Scotland was acquired in1984. This was Balmacaan Wood nearLoch Ness in Highland and the purchasewas made possible after a £100,000public appeal. In 2000, Drumlamph inCounty Londonderry became our firstancient woodland in Northern Ireland.Each UK country now has its own wellestablished and very effective officeand team.

The new millennium also saw a shift inconservation philosophy with thepublication of Expanding our Horizons.The document outlined the Trust’s viewson a more expansive landscape scaleview on conservation.

In a nutshell, it explained how the bestway to conserve woods was not just tofocus on nature reserves, but to work

with others to manage entire landscapesto benefit nature and people (for a moredetailed explanation of our landscapescale approach see theVolunteerNewsletter 2008).

WE HAVE SINCE GATHEREDTHOUSANDS OF PUBLIC

RECORDS OF THE CHANGINGTIMING OF NATURAL EVENTS

Expanding our Horizons took intoaccount the growing spectre of climatechange. In the same year it waspublished, we partnered up with theCentre for Ecology and Hydrology tohelp expand their phenology project.Now rebranded ‘Nature’s Calendar’, wehave since gathered thousands of publicrecords of the changing timing of naturalevents due to climate change.

A simple philosophyThe Woodland Trust has always been an independent spiriton the subject of how woods should be conserved, aninheritance from the founder’s common sense approach.

‘Kenneth Watkins’ philosophy on woodland management wasdisarmingly simple’ says Mike Townsend, ‘based on the belief that,given the timescale of broadleaved woodland, there was seldom theneed to rush in and intervene.’ (Nowadays, we still have a lot ofsympathy for this view, but believe that woods – particularlyancient woods planted with non-native conifers – sometimesneed a helping hand).

He also believed in woodland creation, albeit on a small scale inthose days. Involving people in doing so was also considered key.The first site acquired purely for woodland creation wasDishcombe Wood in Kenneth’s beloved Devon, acquired in 1974.

Volunteers have always played a major role in the Trust’ssuccess, and for the first five years there were no paidworkers. By 1977, 22 woods were owned, not just in Avon butin six counties. In the same year, John James became its firstfull-time member of staff. John went on to become director ofthe Trust, staying until his retirement 20 years later.

In 1978, the Woodland Trust became a membershiporganisation. Membership was, and still is, a vital way for theorganisation to increase its voice as well as providing reliableincome to anchor the job of protecting native woods.

iStock

VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER 9

A HISTORYPam Rivers and JillBonnell share theirpassion for the fruittrees of Merryhill inBushey, Hertfordshire

The MerryhillFruit Field started as a handful oftiny fruit trees and we have planted moreeach winter. In 1999, the area was a bare,arable field. Now there are nearly 200 treeswhich we care for throughout the year.We keep them weed free, fed, pruned and,hopefully, harvested.

We have allotments adjacent to the Fruit Field so alwayshave our ears to the ground forhappenings on the wider site.We walk it watchfully and pickup litter where we can.We havebeen regular members of theMerryhill Stakeholders Committeesince its inception.

The Fruit Field stands at the highest point of Merryhill sowe have wonderful views across the young forestand the open grazing fields, and on across into west London.In the distance we can see the planes coming and goingto Heathrow.

We have mainly apple trees, most of which are old localvarieties, which have been indanger of dying out with thepost-war decline of Hertfordshireorchards.There are also pears,quinces, medlars, plums, damsons,mulberries, cherries and a fewhazels and walnuts.

We harvest the fruits if the crows don’t get there first.Because our trees went in so tiny, harvests have not beensignificant so far.We do have masses of crab apples, which we turninto gorgeous jelly and sell jars to raise money to buy trees.

Although it is beautiful, particularly in early summerwhen the wild flowers are at their peak, it lies wet in the winterand the little trees have donewonderfully to establish as they have.We have fretted over the health ofthese little trees, toiled round themagain and again, but when walkers stopand say how much they like it, it is agreat feeling.

We imagine it maturing and giving people pleasure for manyyears when we are gone.

Spreading thewordNature’s Calendar hasboth raised the profile ofthe Woodland Trusthugely, (leading to a majorpartnership with BBCTV’s Springwatch) and therecords it has produced are takenextremely seriously by the scientific community. In 2007,the Government’s Joint Nature Conservation Committeeadopted the Trust’s phenology spring index as one of only18 UK biodiversity indicators.

Over the years, influencing government and decision-makers has become increasingly important to the Trust.Our Public Affairs director, Hilary Allison, was appointedin 1998 and now has a strong team working with her.They do all they can to influence policy to benefit nativetrees and ancient woods, as well as campaigning to savethreatened individual ancient woods. There are manyvaluable woods that would not be there today were it notfor their work.

WE ARE NOW BETTER EQUIPPEDTHAN EVER

We believe that now, in 2009, Kenneth Watkins would beextremely proud of what the Woodland Trust has achievedand the scale of our operation today.We own over 1,000woods (acquiring land that can fulfil our landscape scalevision is still vital to us), have around 190,000 members,1,050 volunteers and more than 290 members of staff.The apparent challenges faced by native woodland havegrown and shifted significantly since 1972, but we are nowbetter equipped than ever to deal with them.

WTPL/BobCarter

MMyy PPaattcchh

Hazelnuts: WTPL/Pete Holmes

10 email: volunteers@woodlandtrust.org.uk tel: 01476 581111

OUT OF THE WOODSYou don’t have to be in the woods to volunteer for the Woodland Trust. Roles are many and varied.

An intelligentarrangementAccenture is a company that helps businesses andgovernments to improve their performance. And they havehelped the Woodland Trust to do just that.

Accenture generously allowed their staff to provide us withexpert services free of charge through their employee volunteerscheme after selecting us as their chosen environmental charity.

The Accenture staff members helped the Trust become moreeffective and efficient by offering expert guidance on improvingand developing our marketing and finance systems.

The arrangement has been extremely beneficial to bothorganisations. Accenture staff have enhanced their professionaldevelopment and the Woodland Trust has saved months ofresource and preparation time, freeing up more funds to helpthe UK's woods.

A drive to be greenerA volunteer with a passionfor all things eco has beenhelping us develop our GreenTravel Plan. Although Truststaff already did their best totravel with the environmentin mind, Judith Twentyman

has enabled us to put together a more comprehensive plan.Her help in providing advice, steering the creation of the planand consulting with staff should lead to us reducing ourimpact on the environment even more.

Wanted – localmedia volunteersWe are looking for volunteers with great communication

skills to help us put our message across to the localmedia. We need people from allover the UK who can help usraise awareness throughdeveloping contacts with themedia, generating news releases,

setting up photocalls and, if appropriate, giving interviews.

If you have relevant experience to offer and can spare aroundan hour a week for a year or more, please get in touch. This is a very rewarding role with lots of potential to make a real difference.

To register your interest, go to woodlandtrust.org.uk/lmv

Making the most of your new websiteWe hope you like our new improved website, which finally went online earlier this year. Thanks to those of you who helped get it up there by providing feedback on early versions. Here area few ways you can help us to improve it and ways that you can enjoy interacting with it:

• If you have a blog, or manage a website, please add our news feeds into your site as an RSS.

• If you are visiting Trust woods, take pictures and upload them onto the Our Woods section of the site.

• Add thoughts and comments onto the page about your favourite wood.

• Join our Facebook page and show you’re proud to be part of the Woodland Trust!

• On the home page, use the ‘I am interested in’ box to set your subject preferences to ‘Ways to take part’

Phil Lockwood

Phil Lockwood

VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER 11

OUT OF THE WOODSYou don’t have to be in the woods to volunteer for the Woodland Trust. Roles are many and varied.

Not onour watch!Volunteer contributorMandy Hillier findsout how WoodWatch isshaping up, and meetsa man using the powerof song to save woodsunder threat

Crusades to save ourprecious woodland come inall shapes and sizes and ournewly launched ‘WoodWatch’campaign is successfullyfocusing on communityempowerment to save woodsand individual trees.

While the Trust marshals itsresources, influence andexpertise to fight for thepreservation of significantblocks of ancient woodland,sometimes launching costlyand long-winded legal battles,it is also often asked for helpin neighbourhood struggles toprotect individual trees orsmall woods.

Says Trust campaigner Kaye Brennan,‘As a small teamin a charity with limitedresources we must focus ourefforts on protecting the UK’smost precious habitat – ancientwoodland. But every single daywe are alerted to new threats tosecondary woodland andneighbourhood trees, which arealso very important. So we setup WoodWatch to enable peopleto save the woods and treesthey care about themselves,’

At nearly a year old,

WoodWatch is up andwalking but to get it running,Kaye wants people to sign upto be ‘WoodWatchers’ onthe Trust website. There,people can access a specialCampaigns e-newsletter,expert guidance and usefulcontacts, including aFacebook page where fellow tree conservers canmeet up electronically,amounting to a network ofadvice and suggestions.

“BUT THE CHAINSAWCAME. THE SMOKETHE FLAME. THEYBURNT THE WHOLE

LOT DOWN.”

‘By providing them with the toolsand resources they need to challenge threats we canadvise people on navigating the planning laws, TreePreservation Orders and how to organise local campaigns. And although we cannot putpeople directly in touch witheach other, we link peopletogether through Facebook.

‘People see us as the woodlandguardians but we can’t alwaystake action in every case – asmuch as we would like to. Wewant everyone to realise that bybecoming WoodWatchers theyneedn’t rely on the WoodlandTrust alone to protect theirwoodland – their voice caninfluence decision making locallytoo.’ said Kaye.

One of the latest aids to belaunched via WoodWatch is asmall grants fund, where agroup or individual canreceive up to £100 towardscosts (see page 15 for more).

More than two years ago, theDownlands Action Groupwas formed to campaignagainst housing developmentdestroying ancient woods inthe Uckfield area of Sussex.Although younger,WoodWatch was able to helpin what became a successfulfight, which helped save theWoodland Trust's Lake Wood.

WoodWatch is an asset thatreaches out in many

directions such as linking upthe very helpful andknowledgeable Ancient TreeHunt verifier, Steve Waterswith local campaigns. There isalso the time-honouredmethod of getting a messageacross by song.

Greg Harper is not a Trustmember but he is a treelover, especially those on hisnative South Downs. So when Titnore Woods nearWorthing were threatened byhousing development,singer/songwriter Greg wroteAll Gone, a protest song hesings at concerts andperforms over the internet.His performances also help to gather essential funds forthe campaign.

To quote the lyrics, ‘But thechainsaw came. The smokethe flame. They burnt thewhole lot down.’

Greg’s is an example of someof the creative waysWoodWatchers are spreadingthe word about woods underthreat, and making a realdifference locally. ‘There’s noprescribed format for takingaction to save your woods andtrees, but you could start bytelling the right people howimportant local woods are toyour community. You can make areal difference and often for thelong term too. When the woodsand trees you love are at risk don’t be a bystander’says Kaye, ‘Be a WoodWatcher.’

For more information onapplying for the newWoodWatch grant tohelp your local campaignturn to page 15.

SPEAKERSAwareness of the Woodland Trust’s work is given a huge boost by our speakers’network. If you know of an organisation or group who would like to book apresentation, contact the volunteer speaker service on 08452 935 752 or email vsmail@woodlandtrust.org.uk Talks can also be requested

online at woodlandtrust.org.uk/talks

12 email: volunteers@woodlandtrust.org.uk tel: 01476 581111

Hug talk celebrates400,000 treesA talk organised by Essex County Council has celebratedthe planting of 400,000 trees in the county. Around 120people came along including influential landowners, countycouncillors and parish councillors.

John Fleetwood, our speaker in Norwich, led a walk and talkaround Mark’s Hall. Over 40 people accompanied John on atour of some of the oldest trees on the estate including theimpressive Honeywood Oak and Stranglers Oak.

Willing volunteers hugged the trees to demonstrate one of theways to measure an old tree (to see if it qualifies as ‘ancient’for the purposes of our Ancient Tree Hunt – see page 4).

The talk was received with great enthusiasm and, at the end,John was approached by several people asking for a similartalk to be given to their own groups and societies.

Digital movecompleteBy the end of 2009, the change to digital presentation will becomplete. So thanks very much for your cooperation. Thedigital system is easy to use and gives more creative flexibilityto your presentations. If you need any more information onthe digital switch, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

WTPL/Dominic Nicholls

© Woodland Trust

Trees not a nuisancesays JoeOur speaker in central London, Joe Nunez-Mino, has helpedto improve the public image of trees at an open talk event inTower Hamlets. Some members of Tower Hamlets ResidentsAssociation, like too many people in urban areas, saw trees as a nuisance.

Problems like sap dripping on vehicles and pavements, branchesblocking light and pigeons perching were annoying residents,making them want to lose and not gain trees.

But Joe’s talk was a huge success. Residents had a much clearerview of the benefits of trees and several attendees even signedup to find out more about the local green group that themanager of the Association was setting up.

© Woodland Trust

VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER 13

PHOTOGRAPHERSA picture paints a thousand words and our volunteer photographers provide

some of our most powerful tools for campaigning and fundraising. To become avolunteer photographer or offer your images to our library, contact Phil Lockwood

on 01476 581111 x 5543, email photolibrary@woodlandtrust.org.uk or visitwoodlandtrust.org.uk/photographers-scheme

Photo library officer, Phil Lockwood, knows better than anyone what the Woodland Trust PhotoLibrary is lacking. And they may be images you have already taken

During my day-to-day administration of the library I regularly come across Trust woods without any photos. Not only this, butsome of our departments also have specific image needs of their own that we can’t fulfil. Here is a list of ‘image asks,’ which willreally help us fill the gaps in our library. It’s an invitation for you talented snappers to get out into our lovely woods and takesome new, fantastic photos.

It’s a fixFixed point photography is a useful and interesting monitoringtechnique, whereby you can set up from a location and take

repeat photographs on a seasonal basis on approximately the

same dates each month or every season.

So, from the crispest, blossoming day in spring, to the sunniest

summer’s day, to the wonderful colours of autumn fall and

finishing off with the snowiest winter’s day – we want them all.

We’re particularly interested in photos of recently-planted trees,

ancient trees or open, arable land and wild flowers. There is

more information in the Woodland Trust Picture Library Guidance

Notes, under section 2 on page 5. If you are registered with theVolunteer Photographers’ scheme, you should have received thisin your welcome pack when you joined.

The key to fixed point photography lies in the consistency ofimages taken with the same lens focus, direction and height atthe same location at regular time intervals – resulting in aseries of photographs showing how the landscape has changedover time. The real value of this lies in the timescale overwhich the photographs are taken – the longer the better andwe’re looking at a duration of one year minimum.

If the idea appeals to you, please send your images in regularlyso we can keep track of them easily. Digital photographs arebe ideal.

New library launchesThe Woodland Trust has launched a brand new Photo Library giving staff full access to all 40,000+ images. This means you cannow send in photos on raw, tiff or jpeg format and they all will be compatible. So your images will get more exposure and morechance of being used in a Trust publication.

The images we need:

• Young native woodland about 10-12 years old.

• Families and minority groups in a woodland setting. We are always seeking moreup-to-date photos and as people wear clothes - and trees don’t - these photoscan look outdated quickly.

• Phenology subjects for use in web calendars and newsletters – please take a

look at this link to see the types of trees recorded on Nature’s Calendar

phenology survey: www.naturescalendar.org.uk/wildlife/factfiles.

• Single native trees. Most of the images we are given depict woodland. Although

these are useful (of course), the library is lacking single trees. Can you help?

WTPL/Brian Aldrich

Jakob Sigurðsson.

WTPL/Michelle Davies

14 email: volunteers@woodlandtrust.org.uk tel: 01476 581111

WHAT’S NEWCan youcram a wholewood into atiny box…?A box on a screen thatis! The Woodland Trust islooking for volunteers tohelp publicise what theirlocal wood has to offeras part of a new UK-wide campaign whichwill launch next year.Shona Mortonexplains.

VisitWoods is all aboutproviding people who haven’tyet discovered woods withinformation to inspire themto use woods more often,while giving them the factsthey need to plan a fantastictrip. In partnership with othermajor woodland owners, theTrust is gearing up for thebiggest ever promotionalcampaign for ALL Britain’spublicly-accessible woods.VisitWoods will help treelovers and newcomers alikeget into woods and show theamazing range of things youcan do in them.

The UK has some incrediblewoodland, but many sitessuffer from a bit of a PRproblem. Over half of us livewithin 4km of a sizeablewood, but many people havenever visited one. Barriersrange from the practical(Where is it? Can I take mydog? Bike? Buggy?) to thecultural (Would I like it?Won’t I get lost/muddy/told

off for trespassing?).Theseadd up to a lot of missedopportunities for exercise,relaxation, play, andreconnecting with nature.

So how do we get this hugepotential across to someonewho’s never scuffed autumnleaves or meandered througha sunny glade? We’ll be usinga huge range of media to getmore people visiting woodsregularly, from socialnetworks like Facebook andTwitter to more traditionalmeans like photography andvisitor reviews.

VisitWoods will bring all thistogether in one interactive,comprehensive website, whichwill hit the streets in late 2010and will particularly targetpeople who tend to miss outon accessing woodland – olderpeople, those with disabilities,children, and people fromdisadvantaged backgrounds.Volunteers will be at the heartof VisitWoods, as ‘ambassadors’who create reviews, images,podcasts and videos to reallybring the website alive.

VOLUNTEERS WILL BEAT THE HEART OFVISITWOODS

To help get the ball rolling wewill need volunteers tocapture what their favouritewoodland is all about. Our aimis for every single accessiblewood in the UK to have itsown ‘strapline’ that will informpeople who aren’t familiarwith woods and inspire themto give it a try.Your challenge:to capture the essence of avisit to your wood in onecatchy summary!

We’ll be looking for amaximum of 30 words, ideallyjargon-free. Your summarywill be one of the first thingspeople see when they accessthe wood’s unique home pageon the website. Don’t worryabout spelling mistakes orpresentation; your passionand way with words is whatwe need. It doesn’t matterwho owns the wood, if it’sopen to the public we’d loveto know what you think of it.

We know some of thebarriers we’re trying to break down are aboutconfidence, information, andmotivation. Imagine if you,your family, and your friendshad never visited a wood;you’d need convincing! Forinspiration, you could trythinking about the questionspeople might have:

Size: Is your wood tiny,extensive, spacious, gigantic?

Atmosphere: Is it peaceful,atmospheric, stunning,majestic, popular?

Location: Is it in a valley?On a hilltop? Windswept?Easy to get to?

Activities: Is it great forwalking the dog, playing withthe kids, time out from the

rat race, mountain biking?

Accessibility: Does it have

surfaced paths or is it a wild

wood? Are there loos or

refreshments nearby?

Special Features: Is it

famous for its hollow oaks?

Butterflies? History?

Here are couple of examples:

‘This tranquil riverside beech wood

rings with birdsong in spring and

glows with colour in autumn; it’s

the perfect place for a lazy picnic.’

or

‘Just 15 minutes from

Birmingham, this new wood gets

better every year and boasts

surfaced paths and a great café

(with loos) too. Grab your wellies

and enjoy the sunshine.’

We will feature the best on

the new website, providing

the spark that inspires a new

generation of woodland fans.

Thank you – we look forward

to hearing what you think of

your favourite woods!

If you would like to get

involved with VisitWoods

as a volunteer, please go

to woodlandtrust.org.uk/

visitwoods to register

your interest.

WTPL/Niall Benvie

VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER 15

WHAT’S NEW

We welcome contributions to this newsletter.

Short items or ideas for longer articles can be sent to:

email: newslettereditor@woodlandtrust.org.uk

post: Sallyanne Flemons, Editor, the Volunteer Newsletter,

The Woodland Trust, Autumn Park, Grantham, Lincolnshire NG31 6LL

Last year the WoodlandTrust launched its

FREEwoods pilot project tocreate native woodland in

partnership with private

landowners. By the end of the

2008/2009 tree planting

season, we had created

84 hectares of woodland

on 56 sites throughout the

UK, a great contribution

towards our ambitious

woodland creation targets.

Building on the success of our

pilot project, the Trust has

now launched MOREwoods.

MOREwoods is a support and

advice package to landowners

who would like to create

beautiful native woodland.

For moreinformationaboutMOREwoodsplease contactSarah Cunninghamon 0845 293 5689, emailmorewoods@woodlandtrust.org.uk or visit woodlandtrust/MOREwoods

WoodWatch campaign grants now availableGrants of up to £100 are now available to community groups who need financial help with theircampaigning to save ancient woods. Groups may use their grant in any way that assists their campaign.

To find out more and for information on how to apply, go to woodwatch.org.uk and click on ‘opposing athreat to trees and woods’ on the left hand side. A link to ‘Grants to help community campaigns’ willappear below. See page 11 for more about WoodWatch.

WTPL/Steven Kind

FREEwoods gives birth to MOREwoods

TheWoodlandTrust logo is a registered trademark TheWoodlandTrust is a charity registered in England andWales no. 294344 and in Scotland no. SC038885.A non-profit making company limited by guarantee Registered in England no. 1982873 Á Printed on 100% recycled paper 4167 10/09

NEWS & CONTACTS16 email: volunteers@woodlandtrust.org.uk tel: 01476 581111

Getting in touch

The WoodlandTrust

Autumn Park, Grantham, Lincolnshire NG31 6LLTel: 01476 581111

BT Textdirect: 18001 01476 581135

email: volunteers@woodlandtrust.org.ukwoodlandtrust.org.uk/volunteering

Thanks to the following volunteers who have helped

with this issue:

The credits

New office moves closerIf you received the last Volunteer Newsletter, you mayremember we are updating our office as the lease is

set to expire on our old one. The Woodland Trust’s new

offices in Grantham will prove how green design can be both

low cost and energy efficient.

We have now secured a 125 year lease on land opposite the

current office and Bowmer and

Kirkland have been appointed

as the building contractor. They

are scheduled to start building

this autumn and we hope to

move in by July 2010.

Calling all WaitroseshoppersWaitrose are supporting charities

through their Community Matters

Initiative and you could help your native

wildlife by nominating the

Woodland Trust. Every month, each branch

of Waitrose divides £1,000 between three different charities.

The charities are chosen from a selection nominated by local

people and the proportion of the £1,000 allocated to them is

determined by shoppers using a token system. So, if you shop

at Waitrose, please ask for a nomination form in your local

branch. If you see a box where the Trust is already one of the

charities, please help us by putting the token you are given at

the checkout into our box. Thank you.

Mandy Brilliant,proofreader

Mandy Hillier,feature writer

Phil Marshall,ancient tree editor

…and to those who agreed to be interviewed, completedquestionnaires or provided images free of charge.

Please recycle this newsletter or reuse it by leaving it in a publicplace like a library or doctor’s surgery.

Trust volunteersvisit Number 10This summer,we nominatedtenWoodlandTrustvolunteers togo to DowningStreet toreceive apersonal thankyou fromGordon Brown,on behalf of allof ourvolunteers.

Through theEnvironmentalVolunteersReception, theGovernmentrecognised thevaluable roleplayed byvolunteers across the environment sector.

Trust volunteers from across the UK were representedincluding speakers, wardens and walk leaders.The PrimeMinister said: ‘…you and your organisations are appreciated forthe vital role you play in promoting and sustaining environmentalwildlife for future generations; you are an inspiration to us all.’

Ministers Ed Milliband and Hilary Benn also dropped byand our band of volunteers even got to chat around thecabinet table.

Volunteer David Bull prepares to meet the PM