Celebrating CPRE's younger volunteers

Our amazing volunteers power our movement...

CPRE wouldn't be the same without our dedicated volunteers, who help us make the countryside a better place for everyone to live, work and enjoy.

Our extensive network of volunteers spans across over 40 county groups in England and our national teams. Volunteers are involved in a diversity of meaningful activities that help protect our countryside, from trustee and governance roles, to citizen science initiatives. Not all roles require a lot of time; some are remote and others are flexible, so you can fit them easily alongside other commitments.

Every year, thousands of volunteers give up their precious time for us. To recognise and celebrate their invaluable contribution to CPRE, we'd love to share some of their inspiring stories with you.

Youth voice at CPRE

Ahead of our centenary in 2026, we're prioritising youth involvement in shaping our work. We believe it's essential that young people feel empowered to take action on countryside issues like the climate emergency and that their voices are at the heart of our campaigns.

With this in mind, we'd like to shine a spotlight on some of our younger volunteers at CPRE. Read their stories below and find out why these young change-makers volunteer with CPRE and what the countryside means to them.

Introducing some of our younger volunteers...

(c) Jacob Roberts

Jacob Roberts

Planning Volunteer

CPRE Berkshire

'I’ve grown up surrounded by nature- the countryside is my home, so I want to protect it.'

Read Jacob's story

(c) Laura Dickson

Laura Dickson

Rooftop Renewables Researcher, Trustee and Online Campaigns Activist

CPRE Gloucestershire & National CPRE

'I believe that youth participation in addressing rural issues should be encouraged.'

Read Laura's story

(c) Jasmine Boniface

Jasmine Boniface

Litter Pick Volunteer

CPRE Somerset

'I have a lot of passion about countryside and climate issues, and I think volunteering provides a great way to channel this into something.'

Read Jasmine's story

(c) Rosalind Cooper

Rosalind Cooper

Climate Change Research Volunteer

CPRE North & East Yorkshire

'It's really important to me that biodiversity and climate change don’t get forgotten in rural and urban development.'

Read Rosalind's story

(c) Stewart Smith/Shuttlestock

Planning for the future in Berkshire

Jacob Roberts

On the lookout for key developments

After graduating from his undergraduate Human Geography degree in May 2023, Jacob found that ‘I had a bit of time to spare, aside from working part-time as a tutor and studying my postgraduate degree in Law. I was looking to gain some volunteer experience either in law or environmental fields, to build on my knowledge from university and develop my skills.’

During his search, Jacob came across his current role as a planning volunteer with CPRE Berkshire; ‘I liked the fact that the role seemed flexible and not a huge obligation’. Jacob monitors planning application sites and identifies key plans in Berkshire that require attention;

'I basically have to try and make sure that nothing important slips through the net.’

He then shares and discusses these applications with his supervisor and conducts further investigative research into those that are of high interest. He explains that ‘It’s a varied role that’s flexible; I just apply a lot of the skills I gained during my degree’.

Growing up in the countryside

Having lived in the countryside since he was a child, Jacob has a deep appreciation for nature and the outdoors. Yet, he feels that many of us ‘take the countryside for granted and don’t expect it to change. Every year I appreciate the countryside even more’.

As he grew up, Jacob found that his home village was expanding; ‘I noticed new developments being built, with parks and green spaces being overlooked and encroached on by new estates’. He gained a first-hand understanding of the fragility of the countryside in his local area, which has helped inspire his passion for protecting it;

‘I’ve grown up surrounded by nature- the countryside is my home, so I want to protect it.’

Learning from others

For Jacob, being able to learn from his peers at CPRE Berkshire has been invaluable. He explains that ‘I’ve loved learning from my supervisor and the other people I volunteer with; the role is really fulfilling, and everyone is super thankful.’

As Jacob highlights, volunteering can provide a window for knowledge and skill-sharing, acknowledging that in some volunteering fields

‘there aren’t many young people, but this creates a great learning opportunity for a young person entering this space.’

He explains that ‘you’re surrounded by people who have a lot of knowledge and skills, which they can pass on to you. I’ve really enjoyed understanding the planning application process more and learning what to look out for.’

Jacob believes in the value of volunteering for young people, adding that ‘I don’t see a negative to it. They’re happy for you to try, even if you’re worried about how much time you can give. You often get more out of it than CPRE; there are so many benefits to you.’

Read Jacob's full story here

'I know I’m developing skills that will help me later in my career and that feels really good.'

Jacob Roberts

^{Planning Volunteer at CPRE Berkshire}

Championing youth voice in Gloucestershire

Laura Dickson

Researching for a greener future

Laura began her volunteering journey with CPRE by becoming a Rooftop Renewables Researcher with CPRE Gloucestershire. She had been looking to gain some relevant work experience in the environment sector, and this role seemed like the perfect fit; ‘I was looking for something that was long-term enough that it made an impact, but I couldn’t commit to anything much longer.’

With two other volunteers, Laura mapped the potential for rooftop solar across Gloucestershire and helped write this up within a report. Given the large opposition to expanding solar farms in her area, Laura feels passionate about the importance of this research in presenting an alternative climate solution. She explains that

‘I really didn’t want solar energy to be dismissed as a solution to climate change and wanted to encourage a mindset change within my local authority. CPRE Gloucestershire were really on board with this.’

Building confidence and developing new skills

Laura presented her research findings to the board of Trustees at CPRE Gloucestershire and was later invited to present her research at their AGM.

Laura says that ‘one of my biggest achievements and favourite moments was presenting my findings at the CPRE Gloucestershire AGM. I hadn’t really done much presenting beyond university, and I’d never met any of them before.’ She explains that doing this ‘has helped to push me out of my comfort zone’, particularly when ‘presenting in front of an audience that was largely made up of individuals who were outside of my peer group. This experience has boosted my confidence and has helped me a lot in my paid work now, which involves pitching to local authorities’.

Her volunteering experience has not only enhanced her presentation skills, but she also found that

‘The research challenged my own knowledge and perceptions and was a really good opportunity to improve and practice my own skills in using GIS systems.’

Advocating for youth voice on rural issues

Having lived in rural England for most of her life, Laura tells us that ‘a key challenge for young people in the countryside is being heard and listened to’. She feels that

‘There’s a misconception that young people in rural areas don’t exist, or that they don’t care about the countryside. I believe that youth participation in addressing rural issues should be encouraged.’

Laura has actively pursued her passion and turned this into action. After presenting her research at the CPRE Gloucestershire AGM, she spoke with other CPRE volunteers and ‘they seemed really keen to get more young people involved and increase youth participation’. In January, she received an invitation from the Chair to join the board of trustees. This invitation was a special moment for Laura; ‘I thought it was a great opportunity to be a nominated youth voice on the committee’.

Read Laura's full story here

‘I feel like my voice is going to be heard and that, given my age, I can provide a new, valuable perspective on the board.'

Laura Dickson

^{Rooftop Renewables Researcher and Trustee at CPRE Gloucestershire & Online Campaigns Activist at National CPRE}

Making a difference in Somerset

Jasmine Boniface

Litter picking in Somerset

Currently on her gap year before heading to university, Jasmine has been a 2-minute litter pick volunteer with CPRE Somerset since May 2023. During her break away from education, Jasmine was keen to get involved in some new opportunities alongside working full-time, including some environmental volunteering. When she came across the advertised litter picker role with CPRE, it seemed like the perfect fit;

‘I knew this role wouldn’t take up too much of my time, but also meant that I could do something important in my community.’

CPRE Somerset’s litter project has been running since late 2020. So far, they’ve given out almost 300 litter picking kits to volunteers like Jasmine across the county.

A passion for protecting the countryside

Jasmine lives in a busy town, but within five minutes she can be amongst nature. Her family love to be outdoors, having embarked on lots of walks and camping holidays together in the countryside over the years.

‘I’ve definitely grown up with an appreciation for the outdoors and the countryside.’

Her dad also works in the renewable energy sector; ‘I think seeing what he does helped inspire my interest in protecting the environment and addressing climate change’.

As someone who’s passionate about protecting the countryside, Jasmine became quite anxious when she first learnt about environmental threats like climate change and plastic pollution in school. However, she adds that ‘studying geography helped me to see that there are ways to address and resolve environment and climate issues. Sometimes it feels like we can’t do anything, but we can.’

‘I have a lot of passion about countryside and climate issues, and I think volunteering provides a great way to channel this into something.’

(c) Jasmine Boniface

(c) Jasmine Boniface

A stepping stone towards a green career

As a litter picker, Jasmine volunteers as and when she has time. This flexibility makes it easier for her to fit volunteering alongside her other commitments. ‘But I also feel like I’m making a difference and that I’m doing something to help my local countryside/natural areas. I often get my family involved when we go out for dog walks too!’

Jasmine has decided to pursue her passion for the environment as a career and believes that through volunteering with CPRE,

‘I now have an insight into the real-world context of environmental issues, which will be invaluable as I begin my Environmental Science degree in September.’

Read Jasmine's full story here

'Litter is a serious issue in the area where I live, so I really wanted to help address this problem and make a difference.'

Jasmine Boniface

^{Litter Picker at CPRE Somerset}

Bringing climate and planning together in Yorkshire

Rosalind Cooper

A deep connection with the fragile countryside

Rosalind ‘was fortunate enough to grow up spending a lot of time in a small rural village’; she explains that ‘I’ve definitely observed biodiversity change and loss and the creation of new housing developments over the course of my time living here’.

‘I have a real love for the rural countryside, but I know how fragile it is. It’s not as resilient as housing developers want us to believe.’

This first hand-experience inspired Rosalind’s passion for ensuring environmental sustainability is prioritised in planning

‘It's really important to me that biodiversity and climate change don’t get forgotten in rural and urban development.’

She believes that ‘the countryside is a beautiful but also fragile thing- there are landscapes you can’t replicate if you build over them. It’s important that developments are mindful and conscious of this’. ‘I'm really interested in how the countryside and developments can co-exist and how the right developments can enhance the countryside, and not just fill a tick box.’

Rosalind's childhood fostered her deep connection with the English countryside, but she also believes that ‘we need to put more importance on preserving what is seen as wasteland in urban areas, which can get paved over very quickly. Biodiversity in cities is just as at risk as biodiversity in the countryside.’

(c) Rosalind Cooper

(c) Rosalind Cooper

Becoming a CPRE Climate Change Researcher

Rosalind first encountered CPRE while reading Bill Bryson’s ‘The Road to Little Dribbling’. However, her interest in CPRE grew further when she conducted research for her university dissertation on new developments and land use in Cambridgeshire; ‘I came across CPRE in one of the books I read, titled ‘The Rural Housing Question: Communities and Planning in Britain’s Countryside’ by Satsangi et al. (2010)’’. After graduating with a Geography degree, Rosalind noticed a climate change research volunteering opportunity with CPRE North and East Yorkshire that closely aligned with her dissertation.

‘I thought that gaining some experience of analysing planning documents would be useful for me and that it looked like something I could be really interested in.’

So, in September 2023, Rosalind joined the team of around 8 to 15 other climate change researchers. Together, they ‘help guide the council and raise their awareness about the importance of integrating and embedding climate change mitigation and adaptation into their responses to planning applications, and in their own’. Rosalind explains that ‘we’re trying to highlight to them that they should be following their own policies.’

Each volunteer was assigned two local authorities in the area and became responsible for ‘reading through their local plans and picking out their council policies that aim to protect biodiversity and address climate change’. They then read through several development plans in each local authority to decipher whether councils ‘had been following their own policies on climate change and/or biodiversity, and if this had guided their decision to accept or reject each development’. Rosalind tells us that ‘we’re now writing this up into a report for each local authority that we’ll share with them, to show what they’ve done well and what they could do better in the future’. She declares that

‘I’m a firm believer that planning and land use has a direct impact on climate and biodiversity. Councils need to make carbon neutrality a priority, so developers will have to change their approach.’

Gaining a new, holistic perspective of planning

Rosalind has found it ‘really interesting to read development applications and see what they include and what they miss out...it’s fascinating to see how housing developers are approaching the creation of communities. It’s also building on the insights I gained from my dissertation into the planning system.’

More widely, Rosalind thinks that ‘you can change a lot about the UK’s response to the climate emergency and biodiversity loss through planning.’ She believes her research could have a big impact in her community; ‘because I live in the North Yorkshire County authority, my investigations into local plans could help sway the wider North Yorkshire council plan. I’m hopefully helping to guide councils’ responses to climate change through their planning policies.’

She has also been able to access many networking opportunities in her role;

‘Volunteering has helped to link me up with other people who are interested in climate change and planning, including town planners. It’s great to put your name out there as someone who is interested in these issues.’

Read Rosalind's full story here

‘It has helped me to see developments holistically and confirmed to me that this is a big issue that I’d like to explore in my career.'

Rosalind Cooper

^{Climate Change Researcher at CPRE North & East Yorkshire}

(c) Bill Waters

Are you inspired by these stories?

Do you feel passionate about protecting and enhancing our countryside? Would you like to help bring about change in your community and have the chance to meet like-minded people along the way?

Whatever your skills or background, however much time you can give, volunteering can be a great way to give back and make a real difference in your local area.

There's a diversity of ways that you can support our work at CPRE, including local group leadership, fundraising, providing specialist advice, managing social media channels, maintaining websites, picking litter and more!

In fact, we're currently recruiting to some of the roles that our featured younger volunteers are doing. If you've been inspired and want to get involved, do take a look at the links below!

Sign up to become an Online Campaigns Activist

Apply to be a Somerset Litter Picker

Explore all our current opportunities

If you can't see an opportunity near you, it's always worth reaching out to your local group directly to express your interest!

Find your local group