Community Development Team

Marian joined Cumbria Wildlife Trust in May 2024 with 20 years’ experience of leading learning and engagement programmes for museums and heritage sites. She has collaborated with communities and partners on a diverse range of access, heritage and nature projects. 

During this time, Marian has found that working at a grass-roots level with communities to take action on issues that they are passionate about is both massively satisfying and key to long term success.

As well as leading the Community Team, Marian is the first point of contact for communities in the Westmorland and Furness area.

Ruth is an experienced primary school teacher who has spent a decade working with children and adults in the outdoors, but she now works with staff and teams across Cumbria Wildlife Trust to recruit, train and support our work with volunteers. 

Ruth works with a team of volunteer administrators to plan and implement volunteering policy, keep documents and systems up to date and works with outside partners where volunteering is a significant part of delivering our aims and objectives. 

Ami is supporting the development of the brand new reserve of Cold Springs in Penrith, from the practical growth of the site into a space for nature, to engaging people to create a place for the community. This includes engagement events with many groups including planting, access development and surveying of the wildlife that will make Cold Springs their new home.

Freya is working with schools and youth organisations in Carlisle to encourage young people to get out into nature and use their local green spaces, whether this is on school grounds or other local areas. Her project will involve working with 10-18 year olds as this age range has been shown to have the lowest rate of connection to nature.

Schools could be involved with creating wildlife areas, gardening, citizen science, mental health and wellbeing activities, food growing, practical volunteering, bushcraft or anything else they can think of to get outside!

Freya is a Forest school leader and loves getting people out into nature in whatever form that takes and encouraging the next generation to love and care for nature.

Laura joined Cumbria Wildlife Trust as Youth Action Officer in 2026, bringing more than 15 years’ experience in youth engagement, community development and conservation. Previously Youth & Community Lead at Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, she led the strategic development of youth programmes across the county, embedding youth voice into decision-making and creating opportunities for young people to take action for nature through volunteering, governance and practical conservation. 

As our new Youth Action Officer, Laura leads on engaging and empowering young people aged 11-30 across Cumbria, helping them develop the skills, confidence and opportunities to take meaningful action for wildlife and their communities. Passionate about creating inclusive experiences in nature, she has worked with a wide range of communities to remove barriers to participation and ensure that young people's voices are heard, valued and able to shape a wilder future