A year ago, Paul Churchill joined Essex Wildlife Trust as a Volunteer Fundraising Assistant, volunteering one day a week with the Fundraising & Membership Team at Abbotts Hall. Since then, he has become a valued member of the team, using his professional background in banking and project management to support fundraising efforts across the Trust.

Paul first got involved with our Grants & Trusts work, helping to secure funding for conservation projects. Over the past year, he's taken on a wide variety of tasks, including researching funders, checking budgets, analysing data, sourcing application photos and supporting grant submissions. 

As his knowledge of Essex Wildlife Trust grew, so did his involvement. Paul has since expanded his volunteering to Bottengoms, his local site, where he provides administrative and fundraising support to Project Manager Lucy.

To top off a fantastic year, Paul completed his training as Bottengoms Volunteer Walk Leader in July and is now helping visitors to discover this beautiful nature reserve.

Paul's volunteering journey shows how professional skills can make a real difference to conservation. We're incredibly grateful for his contribution over the past 12 months and look forward to seeing what he gets involved in next.