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Volunteer with us!

Help care for wild plants and fungi by becoming a volunteer. Explore opportunities to join our friendly network of over 1700 volunteers, where you will be able to use skills you already have as well as developing new ones.

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Learning Through Volunteering

We are pleased to invite our volunteers to attend a series of Learning Through Volunteering webinars which are taking place on 12 –  23 October 2026.  

Together with The British Trust for Ornithology, Butterfly Conservation, Amphibian and Reptile Conservation and The Mammal Society, we are bringing you a varied and interesting range of learning opportunities.  

Our volunteers will receive more detailed information on these:

  • Introduction to Bird survey schemes- British Trust for Ornithology
  • First Steps in Wildflower Identification – Plantlife
  • First Steps to Bird ID – British Trust for Ornithology
  • Discover Mammals – The Mammal Society
  • Managing habitats for reptiles- Amphibian and Reptile Conservation
  • Careers in Conservation- British Trust for Ornithology
  • Amazing Welsh nature names Enwau Anhygoel Natur Cymru- Plantlife
  • The Secret Lives of Butterflies- Butterfly Conservation
  • Butterfly Friendly Councils: How Volunteers are Inspiring Change- Butterfly Conservation

If you are interested in volunteering for us please scroll down to see our Volunteering Opportunities.

Why volunteer with us?

We offer flexible and varied roles where you can learn and develop through your volunteering. As a volunteer you’ll have access to our exclusive member events programme of online talks covering a huge range of fascinating topics to help you develop your knowledge of wild plants, lichens, fungi and more. You’ll be supported by a dedicated volunteer manager who will ensure you have a full induction and welcome to your volunteering, as well as access to a range of training.

Volunteering Opportunities

There are plenty of ways to volunteer from supporting our teams remotely and flexibly from home, right through to field based volunteering. Opportunities are updated regularly so it won’t take long to find something to suit your interests and skills.

Volunteer Surveyors Waxcap Watch

This Autumn, Join in with Waxcap Watch
Help us find some of the UK’s most colourful and important fungi — waxcaps.
Waxcaps are an Indicator of Rare, Species-rich Grassland. Knowing where waxcaps and other grassland fungi are thriving helps us pinpoint where fragments of ancient meadows survive, so we can protect them for the future.

What you will be doing 

Looking for Waxcap fungi whilst out and about and reporting your finds via an app.  

Location: Remotely based, anywhere where there’s grassland fungi! 

Time Commitment: You can do as few or as many surveys as you like whenever is convenient to you.

 

Get involved

Three Hagges Woodmeadow Lived Experience Group

We are looking for people with lived experience of disability to join a group that will  help make Three Hagges Woodmeadow accessible to more people.

What you will be doing

You will be part of a lived experience group exploring all aspects of the reserves accessibility including physical access, volunteering, and digital and on-site information. You will influence the development of Three Hagges Woodmeadow as an accessible reserve whilst at the same time developing your own knowledge of the reserve and the habitats and species it supports.

Location – Three Hagges Woodmeadow Escrick, York, North Yorkshire, YO19 6EE we are looking for volunteers who live locally to the site.

Time commitment – Regular meetings likely to be every 1-2 months. This role will be for an initial 12-month period, with the opportunity to be involved longer term.

Express interest in this opportunity

Woodmeadow Conservation Volunteer

Three Hagges Woodmeadow Nature Reserve is cared for with the help of a dedicated team of volunteers who support a wide range of practical conservation activities throughout the year. We are looking for volunteers to join our friendly conservation group and get involved in caring for the reserve.

What you will be doing

Tasks vary with the seasons and may include hands-on habitat activities such as coppicing, plug planting and weeding as well as opportunities to learn more about the plants, fungi, and wildlife that make this site special.

Location – Three Hagges Woodmeadow Escrick, York, North Yorkshire, YO19 6EE we are looking for volunteers who live locally to the site.

Time commitment – Our main volunteer day is Tuesday, as well as weekly / monthly bumblebee and butterfly transects (adhoc days and times depending on weather and availability). You’re welcome to join as often or as little as works for you.

Find out more [email protected]

Ranscombe Conservation Volunteer

Become a member of the team! Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve is cared for with the help of a dedicated team of volunteers who support a wide range of practical conservation activities throughout the year. The team is looking for new members and all abilities are welcome.

What you will be doing

Tasks vary with the seasons and may include hands-on habitat activities, lighter tasks, or opportunities to learn more about the plants, fungi, and wildlife that make this site special. You’re welcome to join as often or as little as works for you.

Location – This role is based at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve, Cuxton, Medway, Kent.

Time commitment – The group meets every Wednesday and there will be occasional weekend volunteering. You can come as frequently as you like or stay for part or the whole of the session. Feel free to come for a taster before deciding whether or not you want to become a regular volunteer.

 

Express your interest in this opportunity

Ranscombe Green Team Volunteer

We have opportunities for people living locally to Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve to help care for and share this fantastic space with others. This is a co-produced role, which means you’ll help shape what it becomes. We’ll start with some ideas, but we’re keen to work with you to develop the role around your skills, interests, and what matters to you.

What you will be doing

You’ll have a voice in shaping how people experience Ranscombe, from activities and events to how we share stories about the site. We can provide training, support and resources, and over time the role is designed to become largely volunteer-led, with opportunities to take initiative and shape activities.

Location – This role is based at Ranscombe Farm Nature Reserve, Cuxton, Medway, Kent and there will be opportunities for digital (online) volunteering too.

Time commitment – No contribution is too small as any time you can give is valued.

 

Express your interest in this opportunity

Admin Support Volunteer – Fundraising Team (Salisbury)

We have an opportunity for a volunteer based in our Salisbury office to support our busy supporter care/membership team. You will help the team to ensure our members and supporters receive the highest standards of care and an excellent experience.

What you will be doing

This dynamic opportunity could involve anything from answering supporter queries and letter stuffing, to updating supporter records, filing and researching.

Location – This role is based at Plantlife Head Office in Salisbury, Wiltshire, so we are looking for a volunteer who is based in or around Salisbury. Ideally, we would prefer someone who lives in close proximity to our office.

Time commitment – We are looking for someone who can volunteer one day per week with us in our Salisbury office, aiming to give 5 hours or more (Wednesday or Thursday).

Find out more [email protected]

Species on the Edge Youth Panel – Scotland

If you are aged between 16 – 25, based  Shetland, Solway and North Coast of Scotland, and passionate about your local wildlife, this  is an opportunity for you! Join The Species on the Edge Youth Panel and make a difference.

The Species on the Edge North Coast of Scotland area extends from Durness to Dunnet. As well as targeted conservation action which will include surveying, monitoring and habitat management.

Combining creative arts, wellbeing and nature to support people to explore their natural environment in new ways will be fun and challenging in equal measure.

Find out more

National Plant Monitoring Scheme

Interested in botanical survey? Why not find out more about the National Plant Monitoring Scheme (NPMS).

NPMS is partnership scheme where volunteers survey 5 small plots within their allocated 1km grid square twice a year, with the first surveys starting in April. There are 3 different survey levels for beginner to expert botanists.

The survey was designed and developed by the BSBI, UKCEH, Plantlife & the JNCC.

Find out more

Hear from our volunteers

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to volunteer with us? Here are some of our volunteers on why they decided to get involved with Plantlife and what they’ve been up to.

Jane – Three Hagges Woodmeadow volunteer

 

Find out what Jane thinks about her volunteering.

 

Jane’s video

Neil – Political Advocacy Volunteer

"Volunteering with Plantlife has been an amazing opportunity to see behind the scenes of an organisation I have supported financially, and long thought punched well above its weight in the environmental charity sector. Working on policy has given me an insight into the complex (and often frustrating) world of legislation and regulation and how one goes about trying to steer government into making Nature-friendly changes. It's been a pleasure and a great learning experience helping Plantlife's dedicated policy team in their efforts to achieve that."

Jenny – Cairngorms Volunteer

"Volunteering with Plantlife for over two years has provided me with hands-on conservation experience across diverse habitats in the Scottish Highlands. Work has included population surveys and the successful translocation of the endangered one-flowered wintergreen (Moneses uniflora), as well as habitat restoration through the removal of invasive Rhododendron. My volunteering experience has been both formative and inspiring, deepening my commitment to Scottish plant conservation — and helping me find a niche within it.”

Ian – Volunteer Photographer

‘I’m a Plantlife volunteer Photographer based in Leicestershire. I use my photography skills to capture images of plants and fungi that inspire people to engage in the protection of the natural environment. I love visiting the same sites regularly observing and documenting how they change across the seasons.  I studied Botany at University. Although my career took me in a different direction, volunteering with Plantlife gives me the opportunity to go back to a subject that has always fascinated me. I have a particular passion for Temperate Rainforests spending time in North Wales whenever I can immersing myself in the tranquillity of the forests.’

Wendy – BLOOM Citizen Science Volunteer

"I’m Wendy, I’m supporting the conservation science team who are developing a new AI tool that will be trained to identify plant species within a patch of lawn. I'm using my botanical knowledge to train the software by taking photos of lawn species throughout the year and using special software to label the species in the pictures. I joined BLOOM because citizen science projects really engage the public. Increased knowledge increases interest, I believe. I'm a keen amateur botanist, so this is right up my street, and I've always felt that plants are the "poor relation" in the eyes of the public. I never need an excuse to go out photographing flowers!"

Colin – Cairngorms Volunteer

"I volunteer on a wide range of wildlife/nature activities, so I’m connected with many different organisations, Plantlife being one of my favourites. I always feel plants are treated as slightly second class in conservation, compared to wildlife, which is a pity as successful, complete ecosystems are essential if we are to make a real difference at a landscape scale. Volunteering across the spectrum lets me see the issues from multiple angles, and understand the interactions between plants, birds, invertebrates and more.”

Ranscombe working group members

“It’s nice to give something back to the place where I’ve enjoyed all my life” – David  Ranscombe Working Group Volunteer 'The Ranscombe Wednesday volunteer team has been going for 20 years, as long as Ranscombe has been managed. We have a typical turnout of around 10 each week, all through the year whatever the weather. Without their contributions over the years the place would look very different, and we would not have achieved anywhere near the same results for plants and wider wildlife that we have. We can all see the positive change year on year as we return to the same sites.' – Ben Sweeney Reserve Manager

At the end of the day, someone will say, ‘well, we’ve made a difference here’, and we enjoy the satisfaction of surveying our achievements.

Jonathan, Ranscombe Reserve Volunteer.

Bumblebee on top of pink knapweed flower.

Taking part in the National Plant Monitoring Scheme, has helped to improve my plant identification skills. It’s been an enjoyable experience that’s taken me to a really interesting place.

Emily, National Plant Monitoring Scheme Volunteer.

A person wearing a hat and backpack, squatting in a field of grass writing on a book

Volunteering news

See what our volunteers have been up to and read our latest articles, features and stories all about volunteering.  You can also find opportunities to get involved with us on our volunteering news page.

Read more

The website and the images on this Volunteer page is supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, CC BY 4.0.

The project is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, we have been able to recruit and develop our Digital Volunteers programme.