Wild Ground Reserve Officer Charley supports nature and volunteers
Wild Grounds vital conservation work to help nature and habitats is only possible thanks to the support of its devoted volunteers and dedicated staff.
One of those staff members is Charley Dutton who joined the Wild Ground team in Autumn this year as a Reserve Officer and is responsible for managing some of the nature reserves and for supporting and managing volunteer teams.
Charley first volunteered for Wild Ground back in 2014 when she met Kate, who previously worked for Wild Ground and who managed the Buckley Reserves. Her first volunteering experience with Wild Ground developed her love of nature and wildlife, and at that time she thought that she would love to have a job just like Kates in the future.
Little did Charley know that 8 years later, she would be working as a Reserves Officer managing a number of Wild Ground Nature Reserves and supporting the volunteer teams to conserve wildlife, improve habitats and eco systems.
Charley said, “The part of my job I really like is working with our amazing volunteers, especially on practical tasks like hedge laying and typha pulling , which are great team building exercises.
I’m also incredibly lucky to see some awesome wildlife and to work outside in nature most weekdays.
In terms of challenges, weather is one of the main ones as I work outdoors most of the time – the best-laid plans may have to be changed if there’s high rainfall, soaring temperatures or strong winds.”
One interesting fact about Charley is that she is an excellent Ice Skater and is The Young Adult British Champion in Solo Dance.
Join Charley at her volunteering sessions around the Buckley Reserves of Lane End, Knowle Hill and Spon Green on a Tuesday and the Denbighshire reserves of Glascoed and Trefnant on Wednesdays. Contact Wild Ground on 01978 757524 or email info@wild-ground.org.uk .