Corporate team days

 

Our corporate team days provide a fun, rewarding and safe outdoor experience for your staff to contribute to and learn about nature conservation in the Cotswold Lakes. 

Participants work together in groups, providing both an excellent team building and social opportunity.

 

Attendees will be able to:

  • Learn new skills
  • Enjoy and benefit from connecting with nature
  • Gain knowledge about local wildlife and habitat
  • Understand the history and development of the Cotswold Lakes
  • Appreciate wider environmental issues such as climate disruption and biodiversity loss through the lens of the Lakes

No previous experience is necessary.

Led and supervised by our friendly rangers who are experts in all the activities, we provide all the tools and personal protective equipment needed to safely and comfortably carry out the tasks of the day. All our rangers are qualified First Aiders.

 

What do we offer?

  • A variety of tasks which vary seasonally. Examples include willow coppicing, improving habitat for breeding birds, reedbed management, wildlife surveying, removing invasive non-native plants that suppress biodiversity and making our nature reserves more accessible for local people to enjoy their visits.
  • Most opportunities are at Cleveland Lakes, in the south west of the lakes area, where we have basic facilities – toilets and a field shelter. We can also offer days at a number of our other reserves and occasionally partner sites to support our work programme.
  • A full briefing on tasks and safety by one of our Rangers at the start of the day. Rangers will be with the group all day to provide guidance, answer questions, keep everyone safe and help participants learn about the Cotswold Lakes
  • Flexibility on dates to suit your staff
  • Hot drinks and biscuits
  • Group size generally 10-25 people, depending on the tasks and staff availability
  • Days usually run from 9.30am – 3pm with breaks for drinks and lunch on-site

The days we arrange for the above will be exclusively for your employees and tailored to your interests. If your group numbers fewer than 5 please join one of our regular volunteer days, which are usually on the last Thursday of the month. To join these please register as a volunteer. Once you register, you will receive more information about upcoming volunteering days you can join.

As a small charity with limited resources we make a modest charge for our team volunteering days to cover costs; charges are discounted for companies that support us as Community Champions or in other ways.

For smaller groups of 5-9 we can either join your group with another group if that suits both parties or we charge per head equivalent to a group of 10 to cover our costs.

Add-ons

We can divide the day between volunteering tasks and other activities:

  • A group learning session such as a guided wildlife or history of the lakes walk
  • Watersports such as kayaking and open-water swimming at Cleveland Lakes
  • Nature crafts

Days that include both volunteering tasks and other activities are longer to enable your team to fully benefit from the add-ons. Add-ons attract a supplementary fee.

What do you need to bring?

Whilst a basic level of fitness is required, the volunteering tasks take into account that most participants are unlikely to be accustomed to a full day of physical work outdoors. The level of physical activity in add-ons can be tailored to your group’s needs.

All that we ask of participants is that they come suitably dressed for working outdoors, with the weather in mind and bring their own lunch. We can make recommendations of local places to source lunch to bring to site. A full briefing on clothing and what to expect will be provided ahead of your day.

Please contact james.ravine@cotswoldlakestrust.org to discuss your team needs.