Celebrating National Volunteers’ Week 2020

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02 June 2020

On Monday 1^st June, a new pillar was unveiled at the Milton Keynes Rose by the Mayor of MK to honour and recognise the invaluable work and dedication of volunteers across the city.

The pillar is inscribed with a quote from Mahatma Gandhi says, “the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others”. The Milton Keynes Rose, designed for the City by Artist Gordon Young, has pillars to mark and commemorate many meaningful occasions throughout the year.

In his speech the Mayor said, “Volunteers have never been more needed; they underpin our society, in these unprecedented times there is no more appropriate time to be unveiling a Pillar to celebrate volunteers and at the beginning of Volunteers’ Week”. The Mayor was joined by Community Action MK’s Chair of Trustees Danny Conway who said, “We are very proud that the City has recognised the importance of volunteering”.

This year’s Volunteers Week celebration comes at a fitting time for The Parks Trust, as changes in the Government guidelines have meant that we are able to welcome back some of our own volunteers from Monday 1^st June. Our team has sorely missed their support during this difficult period, and we have never been more grateful for the work they do to help us keep the parks safe and wonderful places to be for both visitors and wildlife.

We have over 200 volunteers who last year dedicated:

2,800 hours patrolling the parks
1,800 hours on practical conservation works
600 hours helping our events programme
400 hours assisting our outdoor learning activities
400 hours of activity from the friends of Great Linford Manor Park
100 hours of biodiversity surveying.

We would like to take this opportunity say a huge thank you to our volunteers and to all the people who generously give their time to volunteer in the Milton Keynes Community.

The Parks Trust volunteer roles currently able to return are Volunteer Rangers, Floodplain Forest Wardens and some Wildlife Surveyors. Any of our volunteers wishing to return must re-register and email volunteering@theparkstrust.com. Please note we are not recruiting any new volunteers at this time.