The Scottish Invasive Species Initiative helps volunteers gain skills and knowledge to support them in their volunteer roles.
We can provide volunteers with access formal training courses (where you can gain valuable qualifications) to gain new skills and support your contribution to invasive species management work now and in the future. You must register as a volunteer to be eligible to access the training opportunities we provide – and be able to put your new skills to good use with us when you qualify so that we can tackle invasive species together.
Training opportunities are expensive to provide and so not available to everyone. We cannot offer free training to those from outside the project area and, for people in the area, we target our offer to those who have made, or have committed to make, contributions to our overall plant control programme.
Formal training and qualifications (e.g. pesticide application and outdoor first aid) are delivered by external providers in locations to meet local volunteer demand – usually identified by project staff and fishery trust staff who will be aware of local volunteer interest and availability. Since the project began in 2018 over 240 volunteers have received formal training qualifications.
In addition, informal training and support is provided by project staff during volunteering – this primarily takes place in the field during task days. If you are new to invasive species control this is a great way to get started.
If you are interested in these training opportunities, please discuss with your local project officer or the fishery or river trust or board staff member you volunteer with.
