A Typical Volunteer's Day: Donna Wilkinson

Donna shares her day at the Discovery Centre 

  

9:45 am

I arrive at Clumber Park and en-route to the Discovery Centre I chat with fellow volunteers from different teams within the park.  It's great to have a catch up and find out what's happening elsewhere around Clumber.

Donna Wilkinson, Discovery Centre Volunteer 

9:55 am

After checking out the information board in the mess room for an update I pop my head round the office doors to say hello to staff members.  Eyes glued to the monitor, fingers clicking away at the keyboard and a buzz of activity from the telephones and radios, but this does not deter the team from sparing their time.  There's no demarcation between staff and volunteer.  I'm always made to feel welcome and a valued member of the Clumber team.

Another volunteer also arrives and it's great to see either a familiar face or someone I haven't seen for a while.

10:00 am

As the gates to Clumber Park officially open, so do the doors to the Discovery Centre and visitors begin to trickle in.  Together we two volunteers not only meet and greet visitors, but share our passion for nature.  Often there is a group of children to interact with.  What will we find in the tank?  Can we spot all of the animals in the trees?  Which animal or plant will surprise us most under the microscope? The children convey their interest by telling stories of animals back home, be they family pets or wild animals.

It's not children alone, but the adults are also enthusiastic to talk.  It's wonderful to hear about sightings and experiences from around the country, indeed from the four corners of the globe.  Only the other week a family from France was teaching me the French names for the animals.  And today, a couple speaks of the number of years they have been visiting Clumber.  They go on to express their sadness at the loss of animals they would have normally encountered on their daily walks in their own locality.  This is what makes volunteering at Clumber Park so special: it's real-life.  It's talking with people face-to-face about things which have meaning to them and which exudes human emotion.

11:45 am

The conversation does not always centre on nature.  Frequently, there is a divergence to other shared commonalities.  Life in general really and, of course, a touch of good old British weather mixed in!  Interactions also take place outside the entrance to the Discovery Centre where family members wait with pet dogs.  Today is no exception and in the sunshine I speak to a mother awaiting her husband and three children who are exploring the centre.  We talk of pets, children, school and Angola - her native African country.  I love learning about all walks of life.

12:30 pm

A family who visited the Discovery Centre in the morning returns to tell me they discovered a beetle outside in the park.  The whole family then becomes engrossed in the library searching for an image in an attempt to name the beetle.  The final piece in the jigsaw is the two children recording its name - June bug (Cockchafer) - in the wildlife diary.

13:45 pm

It's a late lunch today.  I must have lost track of time when helping preparing resources with a member of staff.  The mess room is quiet today, but sometimes it's a hive of activity with the general natter from volunteers and staff.  A good laugh overall.

14:15 pm

My enthusiasm for the animals in the tank is fostered when a visiting mother and child have a similar interest.  Together we experience our first ever sight of hydra and mum points out to me the small froglets on the water's surface.  How had I neglected to spot them when I arrived?  Many of the older visitors reminisce about catching stickleback and raising frogs from frogspawn, thus providing an insight into different times when it felt much more natural to interact with the great outdoors.

Two adults pop their heads round the door, 'Can we come in?'.  I take the couple for a guided tour of the centre to show that it's not just intended for children.  An hour later and the same couple are still exploring and discovering.

15:30 pm

Another familiar face pops into the Discovery Centre: a volunteer from another area of the park.  We talk briefly about the newly formed Clumber Volunteer Forum of which we're both members.  Both the National Trust and Clumber Park seem to provide lots of opportunities to help the volunteer develop their existing skills and learn new ones.

16:00 pm

It’s time for a coffee break whilst there's a quiet lull.  Mmm, lemon cake which one of the other volunteers brought me back from the cafe earlier.  We're certainly a good bunch who knows how to look after one another!

17:00 pm

Groups of visitors have now disappeared so it's time to close the doors to the Discovery Centre.  As I shut down the power to the displays I ponder that the day has flown by which demonstrates, yet again, that this is a wonderful location to give my time to.

My Volunteering: Helena Roddis

Chapel Guide and Conservation Assistant, Helena Roddis shares her experience as a volunteer:

"I'm a student studying History of Art with Museum Studies at the University of Leeds. It is my interest in art and architecture that attracted me to volunteering at Clumber with the beautiful Neo-Gothic chapel and collections.

Helena Roddis

   I've learnt so much about the chapel as well as the estate and the original house and family. I've worked as a chapel guide and helped with the 'winter clean'. I experienced how much work it takes to conserve the building and its contents. It was a privilege to handle objects from a collection which is remarkably intact and original. I've also helped get some of the artefacts at  Willow Farm ready for display. 

  I was thrilled to help out with the Paa Joe event and have the opportunity to meet such a  brilliant internationally respected artist.

  My volunteering shows that someone can still get involved and have an enjoyable and rewarding experience even if they can't be there on a regular weekly basis."

Members of the Willow Tree Farm team cleaning objects. (G Peachey/NT. 2013)

• Clumber Chapel is open to the public 7 days a week.
• Willow Tree Farm Collection is currently open on Wednesdays only, though we are looking for volunteers to help with Sunday opening in the future.

For more information on how you can join any f our volunteering teams, email volunteeringclumber@nationaltrust.org.uk

One minute on Volunteering: Richard Bourne

Richard Bourne, Clumber Park Volunteer on his volunteering experiences: 

Name: Richard Bourne

Property: Clumber Park

Which department do you volunteer in? Estate Support Team and Volunteer Voice initiative

What is your role? General estate support roles and representing the team through the volunteer forum

What does that entail? A lot of tidying up after messy visitors or bad weather. Grass strimming, sweeping, leaf clearing, snow clearing, branch clearing, bin emptying. Or anything else that the team is asked to do. Early morning inspection drives around the park.

Estates Support volunteers getting stuck in

How often do you volunteer? One day a week.

How long have you been a volunteer for the National Trust? Eighteen months

How did you find out about volunteering for the National Trust? I think I looked on volunteering opportunity websites.

What’s your favourite part of volunteering? Friendly interaction with other volunteers and staff.

What is/was your day job? Engineering Manager

What’s your favourite part of Clumber Park?

The open parkland.

What’s your favourite National Trust Property? Don’t I have to say Clumber? But perhaps it is really Cragside because of family holidays visiting it with my children and my mother.

What has been the best moment volunteering so far?  Too difficult!

If volunteering were a cake what would it be and why? Fruitcake, with variety in each bite.

Thank you Richard.

A Day in the Life: A Volunteer Visitor Guide

Volunteer Keith Macdona shares his experiences: 

I try to get to Clumber by eleven so I’m there when it starts to get busy. Some days I get in early and have a walk around the lake. It’s beautiful and so quiet first thing in the morning. I make sure I’ve read Clumber Weekly and the first thing I do is go into the Discovery Centre to find out what’s going on so I’m bang up to date. Next I walk round the Turning Yard and the Pleasure Grounds making sure everywhere is clean and tidy for our visitors.  It’s important our park looks good.

After that I’ll stay around the car park and Turning Yard areas for a while to meet and greet people.  People come to Clumber for all sorts of reasons. Some just come for a coffee at the cafe, some meet friends, some take the dog for a walk, some bring their children or grandchildren and others want the work out of a long bike ride or a walk. My job is to make sure that whatever they want to do, they have a great day out. 

Volunteer Visitor Guide Keith Macdona

As a Visitor Guide I make sure that every visitor I come into contact with gets a big smile and a warm greeting. I don’t pester people. It’s their day out. But I do keep my eyes open for people looking a bit lost or reading the information boards. I approach them and ask if they’re ok and if I can help with anything. That’s the best bit of being a Visitor Guide. You don’t need encyclopaedic knowledge of the trees, the birds or the history of Clumber Park. There are people around you who can know all that stuff. You just need to be prepared to chat, find out what our visitors want and tell them the best way to do it. I try to go the extra mile to help. If a first time visitor asks me where the cafe is I don’t give them directions, I walk with them. If someone is genuinely interested in knowing a bit more about Clumber I’ll have a stroll round with them, maybe suggesting things like a trip to the Walled Kitchen Garden or the Chapel. I’ve walked for two hours around the lake with one family.

At lunchtime I’ll go to the Mess Room at the Discovery Centre and have lunch with some other volunteers and staff.  This is a great way to find out what’s coming up in the future.

Keith's favorite area of the Park

After lunch I check everywhere is litter free again. I may help to clear a few tables at the cafe. The staff there can be rushed off their feet at busy times and we’re all in the same team. Then it’s back to welcoming our visitors again. I’ve helped people take cycles off cars, held dog leads while children are put in car seats, directed drivers to free spaces in the car park, pushed mobility scooters with flat batteries and even found a piece of string for a makeshift dog lead for a visitor who’d forgotten it. There is so much variety to being a Visitor Guide and you get out of the role what you put into it. That’s the problem with writing A Day In The Life Of A Visitor Guide. there’s no such thing because every day is different. Only one thing is the same. Our visitors really appreciate being welcomed to Clumber and enjoy having a Visitor Guide around.

I love my job. How many people can say that these days!

Happy National Volunteers' Week 2013

The first week in June every year is a time for celebrating the contribution of volunteers in organisations across the UK. Here at Clumber we are thankful for every single piece of work volunteers do, and although we hope volunteers feel appreciated all year round, we would like to take this opportunity to make a bit more of a fuss, because our volunteers are really special and we couldn't do a lot of what we do without them.

Over the next week, we will be posting stories here and sharing thanks from different teams.