Help protect the landscape and wildlife of Chichester Harbour. One of the easiest ways to get involved is to join the Friends of Chichester Harbour where, for a monthly donation, you can make a real difference to the protection of the Harbour.
There are also ways to get directly involved in protecting Chichester Harbour, including a variety of practical outdoors tasks.
Conservation Work Parties
Our team of rangers lead work parties with volunteers from the Friends of Chichester Harbour. Work parties are held for 2 hours mid-week and include a variety of practical conservation tasks, from bramble clearance, coppicing and tree planting, to mending paths, litter picking and survey work. To attend a work party you must be a member of the Friends of Chichester Harbour; you can join through their website here.
Solent Seascape Project Volunteering
We are a proud partner in the Solent Seascape Project -an ambitious project aimed at seascape-scale habitat restoration. There are a number of volunteering opportunities linked to the key habitats of saltmarsh, seagrass, coastal birds and oyster restoration. We hope to have opportunities within Chichester Harbour in the future, but you can get involved across the Solent here:
Harbour Watch
A regular volunteering scheme to collect litter and monitor the condition of footpaths and sea defences. The Harbour is divided into 31 sections. Each of these has been adopted by a Harbour Watch volunteer. Each month the volunteer walks their section and reports back to the Harbour Office on the state of the footpaths and sea defences. They also collect litter which is disposed of by the volunteer or left in a designated area to be collected later by Conservancy staff.
Harbour Watch volunteers provide an invaluable service, ensuring that Conservancy staff are regularly briefed on over 50 miles of shoreline so that problems can be dealt with as soon as possible.
Collecting litter keeps the shoreline clear, however the tide deposits debris twice a day so this is a never ending job. Please help out – if you see any litter, feel free to pick it up and dispose of it or contact the Harbour Office if you think it is a particular problem.
Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS)
The British Trust for Ornithology Wetland Bird Survey monitors migratory birds in Chichester Harbour. We cooordinate monthly surveys, which are carried out by a group of dedicated surveyors.
The most important months for surveys are between September and March as this is when tens of thousands of migratory water birds arrive in Chichester Harbour to feed over the winter period. These surveys provide vital information that can be used to estimate population sizes and any changes to the quality of feeding areas within the Harbour. Volunteers are vital to the protection of these birds. To learn more about what is involved, please visit the British Trust for Ornithology website and contact our Ecologist, Peter Hughes.
Education
(Sorry – no opportunities currently available)
An opportunity to work with schools, colleges and groups with additional needs through our Education Centre to enhance their understanding of the harbour environment. Contact Jane Latawski, our Education Officer, for more information.
