I’ve been involved with STAA on St Ann’s Allotments for over a decade starting here as a volunteer myself, and in that time I must’ve met hundreds of volunteers. What has been remarkable is how every single volunteer has brought unique skills and enthusiasm, yet there’s something that connects us all in our passion for green issues in a city area.
Looking back on the last year of volunteering, it’s been a particularly big year. With the pandemic, and then with us beginning our ‘Growing to Grow’ lottery-funded project. Yet, having only just come out of lockdown this spring we probably have more volunteers now than we’ve ever had!! It’s amazing to think of the impact that the power of volunteering can have, and we are proud to offer an opportunity for people to safely socialise, learn new skills and improve physical health and mental wellbeing.
Volunteers are at the core of what STAA is able to deliver. By tackling issues such as local communities being able to access nutritional food, the preservation of local heritage, supporting biodiversity and enabling wider groups to access our projects. What I like most about our volunteering is how it brings together a wonderful mix of heritage, wildlife, gardening, and community benefit. It’s a great time to get involved – there‘s a lot happening across our projects with loads of different opportunities to meet like-minded people, learn some new skills, and help us have an even bigger impact.
We have to say a huge thank you this year both to the long-term volunteers who‘ve been dedicated, amazing and central to keep us and our projects going. Now, we excitedly welcome the extra energy of new volunteers, and what this means for the wider impact of STAA in the coming weeks and months.
Become a volunteer
If you would like to support us as a volunteer through wildlife conservation, gardening or heritage, you can find out more and apply here: https://staa-allotments.org.uk/volunteering-with-staa/
