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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Fiona McKellar and Linda Mooney

Highlights and updates from Guardian volunteering week 2014: Tuesday

Camley Street Natural Park, London Wildlife Trust
The entrance to Camley Street Natural Park, London Wildlife Trust Photograph: Gwyn Lockett/Guardian

So, that's day two of volunteering week in the can, as they say in the film business (thank you Cutting East Film Festival team).

We're back in three cities across two continents tomorrow when the Manchester team return to Stretford; the New York team go back to school to talk about healthy eating and we cross the road to Global Generation's Skip Garden in King's Cross for the first part of a two-day project.

There will also be work going on inside and outside at the New Horizons Youth Centre, inside (only) at Pentonville for the newsletter class and there'll be a feature writing workshop for members of Opening Doors London (ODL) at our London HQ Kings Place.

And we'll be bringing you news, pictures and updates from all the projects on our live blog.

Final update from Camley Street Natural Park

After a long hard slog the volunteering team have put down their shovels...

...laid down their gloves

...and said goodbye to their new friends, Isaac (the newt) and Terry (the toad).

Great work guys, I’ll leave the final words to Guardian volunteer Robin Hough.

Updated

I really enjoyed helping to serve lunch at the GMHC. I have heard a lot about their work and it was a privilege to be able to contribute, even in a small way. Everyone there was so friendly and welcoming. I'd definitely like to volunteer there again.

Jana Kasperkevic

We helped out with serving food and cleaning up the dining room. I really enjoyed the day, it was a great experience. I want to go back and volunteer at GMHC again soon.

Sheree Lindsay

Update from our New York volunteers

This year, colleagues in our NY office are volunteering with New York Cares, an organisation that runs volunteering projects with charities and community groups across the city.

The first project of the week was at Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC). Volunteers helped out by preparing and serving lunch to the clients at the centre.

And finally some pictures of the Great Crofters enjoying teatime in the sun.

Great Crofters enjoying the volunteering day at the centre
Great Crofters enjoying the volunteering day at the centre. Photograph: Lisa Spiller/Guardian
Great Crofters enjoy tea with the Mad Hatter, Guardian volunteering week 2014 at the Great Croft Resource Centre.
Great Crofters enjoying tea with the Mad Hatter, Guardian volunteering week 2014 at the Great Croft Resource Centre. Photograph: /Guardian

The white rabbit was there. We have this rather blurry photo of him. He was probably moving too fast for us to get a proper shot.

Guardian volunteer with rabbit ears on at the Great Croft Resource Centre for Guardian volunteering week 2014
The white rabbit? Photograph: Lisa Spiller/Guardian

Here he is again playing cards. Still not a great picture though, he's terribly elusive.

Guardian volunteer at the Great Croft Resource centre for volunteering week 2014
Another sighting of the white rabbit? Photograph: Lisa Spiller/Guardian

Great Croft Resource Centre

The party's over now at Great Croft, Alice and the Mad Hatter, the volunteers and Great Crofters have all gone home.

Here's a couple of quotes and some final pictures to give you an quick overview of what sounds like a great day:

What a fun day out - a great time had by all.

We had a big ray of sunshine beaming down on us today - and it wasn't just the sun - the volunteers shimmered.

And here's Alice and the Mad Hatter, Lee Fels, positively 'shimmering'.

Guardian volunteers at Age UK Camden's Great Croft Centre for Guardian volunteering week 2014
Guardian volunteers at Age UK Camden's Great Croft Centre for volunteering week 2014 Photograph: Lisa Spiller/Guardian

Updated

An enjoyable and valuable day for the Cutting East crew with every session a favourite for one of them. They also had fun with the Guardian volunteers who, they said, were approachable and supportive. I think it was a successful day for all of us.

Ruth Kiveal, project manager

And that's a wrap for the Cutting East Film Festival crew

All 15 of the young people who took part in today's Interview Masterclass had their worked reviewed at a feedback session.

Camley Street Natural Park

It's been a wild day at Camley Street.

Here's Isaac the new(est) member of the volunteering week team.I'm not sure we've got a volunteering week t-shirt in his size.

Terry has been has been hanging around as well.

I don't think either have been much help clearing out the canal and wheeling compost around the site.

But that's OK as team leader Dave said they've all been having:

glorious fun in the mud.

Hopefully he means the whole team and not just Isaac and Terry.

We've completely stripped out the whole allotment. The beds have been built as well as the paths and we've completed our first row of fencing. But there's still lots more to do - bring on tomorrow!

Rob Court, project manager in Manchester

Let's hope the sun makes a reappearance then, as well as the volunteers.

Updated

Stretford Sure Start Children's Centre

The outdoor volunteers in London have been very lucky with the weather, it's been sunshine all the way since the start of the week. In Manchester, it's not so hot; the skies are grey and the rain has arrived so the volunteers have called it a day. But look how much they've done already

Stretford Sure Start Children's Centre this afternoon - what a difference a few hours make.
Stretford Sure Start Children's Centre this afternoon - what a difference a few hours make.
Photograph: Rob Court/Guardian

Great Croft Resource Centre

The Mad Hatter's tea party is well under way now at Great Croft – but not a sleepy dormouse in sight ...

Members of the Great Croft Centre enjoying a Mad Hatter's tea party – Guardian volunteering week 2014
Mad Hatter's tea party – Guardian volunteering week 2014 at the Great Croft Centre. Photograph: /Guardian

... just lots of cake, drink, music and hopefully a fun time for all.

Members of the Great Croft Resource Centre enjoying the Mad Hatter's tea party, Guardian volunteering week 2014
Members of the Great Croft Resource Centre enjoying the Mad Hatter's tea party, Guardian volunteering week 2014. Photograph: /Guardian

The Guardian Angels choir led a sing-a-long session.

And we had more live music from some of our digital development team – the name of the band as yet unknown.

Possibly the Guardian's answer to Mumford and Sons?

Here they are giving the party a folk-festival feel with covers of tracks from Pink Floyd, Bob Marley and more.

Band of volunteers at a Mad Hatter's tea party, Guardian volunteering week 2014.
Band of volunteers at a Mad Hatter's tea party, Guardian volunteering week 2014. Photograph: /Guardian

And now it's time to apply all the skills they've picked up throughout the day.

Then it was on to Guardian colleague Bill Shepherd, who showed them how to film using their smartphones

More from the Cutting East Film Festival crew

Project manager Ruth Kiveal showed the festival programmers around the multimedia area on the third floor at Kings Place

Updated

Rob Court, project manager at Stretford, has just sent through a few more pictures and it looks like they're making lots of progress on the fencing

One job will soon be off the list at Stretford: fencing is well underway
One job will soon be off the list at Stretford: fencing is well underway. Photograph: Rob Court/Guardian

Sure Start Stretford and Lostock Children's Centre, near Trafford Park, opened in 2007. The Centre can accommodate up to 28 children at any one time. The team from GNM are working on the allotments, where the little ones spend time learning and playing. Items on the to-do list include building a small timber decking area, fencing off white gravel pathways - and putting up some animal-shaped mirrors.

Stretford Sure Start Children's Centre

The Manchester team are spending the first of two days at the Stretford Sure Start Children's Centre.

Dave Newton from Centurion House gets down to work at the Stretford Sure Start Children's Centre
Dave Newton from Centurion House gets down to work at the Stretford Sure Start Children's Centre. Photograph: Rob Court/Guardian

But it's not all fun in the sun...

More news from Camley Street...

Now they're just showing off...

Check out the blue sky in Katy's picture – if you're lucky enough to sit by the window...

Updated

Some pictures just in from Great Croft and one thing we can be sure of is that they've got some amazing cakes waiting to be devoured.

So all is well.

Cake decorating at the Great Croft Resource centre for Guardian volunteering week 2014
Cake decorating at the Great Croft Resource centre for Guardian volunteering week 2014. Photograph: Daniel Sherwood/Guardian

They look amazing!

All decorated by the Great Crofters and Guardian volunteers in one of the morning sessions.

And true to the Alice in Wonderland theme there was also a game of chess on a giant set outside in the centre's garden and indoors a game of giant cards.

The Mad Hatter's tea party is this afternoon and will be accompanied by songs from the Guardian Angels Choir, who will be making a special appearance at around 1.3o.

And it looks like the party has already started in the picture below – but I think they're just limbering up for the afternoon fun.

Great Croft Guardian volunteering week 2014
Guardian volunteers and members of the Great Croft Resource Centre, Age UK Camden for Guardian volunteering week 2014 Photograph: /Guardian

Great Croft Resource Centre, Age UK Camden

I'm a bit worried we might have lost one of today's volunteering teams down a rabbit hole.

They're running an Alice in Wonderland themed day for the members at the Great Croft Resource Centre.

According to the plan the project managers, Sophie Turner and Jeff Marsh, sent through the morning should have started with a white rabbit's breakfast.

I'm not sure what this entailed but I'm pretty sure fluffy bunnies weren't on the menu and hopefully the volunteers didn't keep disappearing off in search of their handkerchiefs.

But it is, perhaps fittingly, a bit of a mystery exactly what happened at the moment.

Updated

update from Camley Street...

...where Guardian staff are busy muck raking ...but not for salacious tabloid-style stories on celebrities, they're hard at work improving the compost beds.

Updated

Being called nosy is a bit of an insult but not if you're an journalist, it's central to all good interviews.

Here's Simon Hattenstone in the middle a how to interview session with the group.

Updated

Cutting East Film Festival – interviewing masterclass at the Guardian

At Kings Place we've got a group of young festival programmers from the Cutting East Film Festival.

Cutting East is the youth-led arm of the East London Film Festival. A group of 15 young people have been working hard over the past six months to stage a three day film and music festival starting very soon from 20–22 June at the Genesis Cinema.

As well as doing all the programming for the festival the young people will be chairing the panel sessions with film professionals.

Today's session at the Guardian will focus on helping them to get the most out of their interviewees and creating great content from the festival.

Volunteer project managers, Gaby and Ruth have an amazing day lined up for the group.

Updated

And just so you don't turn as green as the leaves at Camley Street with envy here's what the volunteering team will be up to today. They'll be clearing footpaths, repairing fences and improving compost beds as well as general site work.

So it could be a hard slog in this heat, it's apparently 21C in King's Cross today.

But it sounds like team leader Dave is up for the challenge.

Camley Street Natural Park, London Wildlife Trust

Just round the corner from our Kings Place offices is the magical secret garden that is Camley Street Natural Park. Nestled on banks of the Regent's Canal this two acre wild-green site is managed by London Wildlife Trust and is one of over 40 reserves they look after in the capital.

Today David McCoy is heading up a team of Guardian volunteers at Camley Street.

Want to see what you're missing out on? Here's a link to short video on a day in the life at Camley Street Natural Park. With the sun shining and blue skies, it's hard not to be jealous of the volunteers working there today.

But don't worry they'll be working hard during their day in this leafy paradise.

Updated

Standby for another jam-packed day of volunteering fun

Yesterday was a busy day for the Guardian volunteering teams, with projects at Age UK Camden, Elizabeth Garrett Anderson school, Pentonville prison and New York Cares. But we've outdone ourselves today with five projects running in London, Manchester and New York.

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