Volunteer Will Townsend has reached a fantastic milestone volunteering with the Hartshill Hayes County Park Volunteer Group after joining nine years ago.
A dedicated conservation enthusiast who has overcome health issues and admits he ‘made a mistake’ when choosing a career path after leaving school has just completed 1,000 hours of volunteering with Warwickshire County Parks.
Will Townsend has just reached the fantastic milestone volunteering with the Hartshill Hayes County Park Volunteer Group after joining the group nine years ago.
The group was formed in May 2011, with about five volunteers undertaking woodland management and conservation practices such as felling, brashing, coppicing, dead hedging and fencing during the winter months, along with the construction of Tawny Owl boxes and varied bird boxes in readiness for the spring.
Will left school in 1964 at the age of 16 and started work at Coventry Colliery as an apprentice underground electrician. At the end of 1971, he went to work as a service engineer on industrial batteries and battery chargers.
In 1999, Will was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and was off work for 13 months, having to undertake chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
In May 2003, Will took voluntary redundancy and started work as a Laboratory Technician at a Geological Investigation Company. He retired in December 2012 and started work as a volunteer at Hartshill Hayes Country Park.
Will soon realised he had made a mistake when he left school, as he had wanted to work in horticulture or forestry but was told, “there’s no money in these jobs – you need to get a job in a factory or office”.
Some of the bigger jobs that Will and the Hartshill Hayes County Park Volunteer Group have been involved in include the installation of 26 way-marker posts for orienteering and over 100m of fencing to reduce the footfall and protect swathes of bluebells within the woodland.
The numbers of volunteers at the Country Park have varied over the years, reaching 20 at its peak. Today, the park has around 14 volunteers in total that come twice a week on a Wednesday and Saturday, including two work placements.
Talking about his move into conservation later in life, Will says: “I wish I’d done what I wanted to do when I left school. The work I do while volunteering at Hartshill Hayes Country Park is the kind of work that I would have enjoyed.
“I enjoy seeing the changing seasons. It’s pleasant working with a group of people who like the same surroundings.”
And when asked about giving his time voluntarily, Will says “hearing a woodpecker drumming or seeing a grass snake, not to mention a nice cup of coffee or a meal in the woods, is reward enough.”
Councillor Heather Timms, Warwickshire County Council’s Portfolio Holder for Environment, Climate & Culture, said:
“I’d like to thank Will for his dedication, time and commitment in playing such an important role in the conservation of the wildlife and green spaces of one of our well-loved Country Parks in Warwickshire and extend my gratitude to all our Country Parks volunteers for everything they do throughout the year, rain or shine.
“Conservation is high on our agenda as we mitigate and adapt to climate change in Warwickshire, which is why we are investing £1 million in community-based schemes and projects throughout the county as part of our Green Shoots fund.
“With 69 successful Green Shoots schemes covering a wide array of initiatives to address climate change, including rewilding schemes to restore areas of forestry lost over time and the creation of biodiversity spaces to engage and inspire residents, I’m delighted that so many community groups are getting involved.
“This is another way that people can do their bit for the local environment.”
For more information on volunteering at Warwickshire’s Country Parks, visit https://countryparks.warwickshire.gov.uk/countryparksvolunteering.
For more information on the Green Shoots Community Climate Change Fund, visit https://www.warwickshire.gov.uk/greenshootsfund.