Conservation grazing volunteering

Help us monitor our livestock on wildlife sites across Surrey

The landscapes of Surrey have been grazed for centuries and this has played a crucial role in shaping some of our most precious habitats including biodiverse heathland and chalk grassland. The Trust continues this practice to help preserve them today.

We graze with about 190 sheep, 200 red deer and 310 Belted Galloway cows or ‘Belties’. Our Belties alone graze over 6,000 hectares of heathland and chalk grassland each year at over 35 nature reserves.

The Trust has a focus on high herd health and animal welfare, and our grazing team is supported by a group of fabulous volunteer cattle and sheep checkers who help with regular checks of our livestock to ensure staff can be alerted and respond quickly to any concerns.

Checks include observing the herd to assess general health, checking fencing and checking water troughs and volunteer cattle and sheep checkers receive training and support from our team of conservation grazing staff.

Get involved

If you’d like to volunteer with our education team, please register your interest and we will get in touch with further information to get you started.