Volunteers are proving to be vital in helping to keep the Yorkshire Dales National Park in tip top condition.

In the last financial year they put in more than 6,000 days of work on projects led or supported by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority (YDNPA).

Rae (correct) Lonsdale, the YDNPA’s Volunteers Co-Ordinator, said: “The volunteers range from the Authority’s own Dales Volunteers and casual volunteers to community groups and students - and the work they do is phenomenal.

“Without them it would be virtually impossible to run some conservation projects and programmes that promote opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of what is special about the Dales.”

Latest figures show that volunteers gave 6,059 days in 2009/10, working on jobs ranging from surveying old buildings and repairing footpaths to supporting local and community environmental projects. Many of the Dales Volunteers have also achieved accreditation to lead groups of visitors on walks and educational activities in different parts of the National Park.

Of the days recorded, 882 were contributed by people from groups regarded as ‘under-represented’ – young people, people with a disability or from an ethnic minority.

“If the work output of a ‘volunteer day’ was directly comparable to that of a member of staff, the Dales Volunteers could be said to add 18 full-time staff equivalents (FTEs) to the work-force, and other volunteers and students a further nine FTEs,” Rae said.

“But the true value of volunteers is about sharing and demonstrating their enthusiasm for and commitment to what is special about the Dales. The extra 20 per cent they add to the staff resource enables the Authority to deliver rather more than that proportion of additional work ¬ in fact, several programmes are almost totally dependent on volunteer effort.”

Malcolm Petyt (correct), the Authority’s Member Champion for Recreation Management, said: “I am proud to be associated with the Dales Volunteers. I work with them from time to time and I am full of admiration for their commitment to the National Park. They make a tremendous contribution to the Dales."

Dales Volunteers work in the National Park within a radius of 35 miles of their home in an effort to reduce their travelling time and so their carbon footprint.

There are currently one or two vacancies for Dales Volunteers in northern dales of the National Park, Rae said.

Anyone interested in applying in those areas should contact Rae on 01756 751630 or on his mobile on 07967 165565.