Our programme for 2026 is now closed, however if you are interested in signing up for 2027 please contact: caroline.hall@yorkshiredales.org.uk
Up Skill, Down Dale aims to support young people on their career journeys by providing a varied program of practical, environmental task days, developing awareness, skills and confidence. The Up Skill, Down Dale group will be provided with an insight into the different job roles, the people and organisations behind them, and offer encouragement on your route to employment or further volunteering in the sector through experiences, training and career development opportunities.
Previous years’ participants have had sessions on peatbog restoration, bee and wildlife surveys, conservation farming, footpath restoration, navigation skills, tree planting and dry-stone walling.
Key information
What is Up Skill, Down Dale? It’s a year long volunteering programme for like-minded young people who want to learn new skills in the environmental sector.
What’s the commitment? One session a month on a Saturday
Where are the sessions? In the North, South, East and West of the Yorkshire Dales National Park!
How long for? 12 sessions over 12 months
How many young people do we recruit for USDD? We will recruit 13 young people for the group.
What’s the cost? It’s free! We reimburse travel costs and can provide outdoor equipment.
Eligibility to participate in USDD
We are looking for young people aged 18 – 24 years who live in the National Park or the surrounding areas. Diversity and inclusion matter to us, and we want to involve young people with a wide range of life experiences and circumstances. We encourage applications from all backgrounds for Up Skill, Down Dale, especially if you have ever considered a career in the environmental sector. No experience in voluntary activity or practical conservation tasks is necessary.
We also welcome applications from young people who:
- are at risk of not being in education, employment or training
- have mental ill health, learning difficulties, a disability, or long-term illness
- are a refugee or asylum seeker
How to apply for 2027
To apply for Up Skill, Down Dale please send an email, text, video or voice note to:
Email | caroline.hall@yorkshiredales.org.uk
WhatsApp | 07766 329847
A year of Up Skill, Down Dale….
Up Skill, Down Dale began at the YDNPA in May 2021, with 12 young people aged 18-29 embarking on a whirlwind journey of new knowledge and skills, friendships with like-minded people and gorgeous Dales vistas.
The group met one weekend a month in different parts of the Yorkshire Dales and volunteered on a wide variety of tasks. In some cases, there was hard graft; bashing back bracken, tree planting or stonewalling. The sessions were also a great opportunity to learn new skills, such as finding out about invertebrate populations through e DNA surveys and learning about peatland bog restoration and upland conservation farming. Volunteers met lots of professionals working in the conservation community and got to explore routes into the green economy.
Teams in the Authority also supported volunteers for specific placements. Volunteers were mentored by staff in the Trees and Woodlands, Wildlife Conservation, Learning and Engagement and Farming Conservation Teams. There were opportunities for First Aid training, navigation practice and GIS training.
A snippet of life as a Youth Volunteer…
Here are some first-hand accounts from previous years’ volunteers;
“I found Caroline to be a great listener, who worked hard to plan days based on activities that members of the group had expressed an interest in trying. One of my favourite Saturday sessions was our trip to Kexwith Farm up on the moors in a remote part of the Dales. We were armed with waterproofs and bamboo sticks to bash back the invasive bracken on the farm. What I enjoyed most about this day was the freedom to move around and chat away with different people, getting to know them as we worked. Along with learning the importance of bashing, we got to have a go at dry stone walling with a friendly group of local chaps who have many years of experience between them and a great sense of humour.
I’ve learned lots of useful nuggets of information, such as not all bees are bumblebees, but all bumblebees are bees, this came from our Bee Survey Day with the YDNPA Tees-Swale Trainee, Rhiannon. I learned that there are over 250 species of bees in the UK and most tend to be solitary, unlike the familiar honey bee that lives and works in colonies.
One of the reasons I believe USDD to be a valuable experience is due to the inclusivity, it has been great meeting like-minded individuals who share similar interests with whom I could be myself around. I have been able to develop new skills such as, how to kick sample a riverbed to collect eDNA, how to start and keep a fire going, and how to engage with people of different ages and backgrounds. I believe USDD played a large part in helping me get my current apprenticeship with Dorset Council as a Countryside Ranger and would highly recommend it to anyone wanting to develop themselves and make friends.”
Lydia Gill, USDD Volunteer
“I wanted to get involved with Up Skill, Down Dale because I found myself living at home as a result of the pandemic, completing my studies from my childhood bedroom. I wanted to meet people and give something back to the environment I grew up in and love. The Yorkshire Dales is such a special place, so it made sense to commit some of my time to volunteering in the Park before I might have to move away for employment.
Up Skill, Down Dale has been fantastic so far – not only am I able to get involved in the landscape, but I’ve met other like-minded young people from across the Park. It’s so lovely to chat to other people my age about why we love the National Park, and what we see as our future within it. I have also been involved in the National Park Management Plan Steering Group, as a Youth Representative which, in part, meant that I was offered the opportunity to meet Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak on Friday 12th November, at Grinton Lodge YHA. In our brief chat, I outlined why I wanted to be involved in the Park, and why USDD is a vital part of the life of young people in the area.”
Laura Day, USDD Volunteer
