This year we decided that we would all write a little bit about our favourite moment of 2024! Below are some short extracts from members of staff at DCRT about their favourite moments of they year!

Sue Goodship – Administration Officer

My favourite moment of 2024 was in June, when I received a warm hug of thanks from a lovely lady, one of the Changing Lives organisation service users.  The ‘ladies only’ boat trip on the Don, was an event we haven’t really done before; the ladies were from diverse backgrounds. Sally had arranged for a little trip on the Wyre Lady boat, starting at the idyllic Doncaster Lock, and with refreshments provided afterwards.   

We all had a bit of a chuckle as the huge ‘Exol Pride’ oil tanker turned up at the lock, just before the Wyre Lady arrived and I think a few ladies did wonder what they had let themselves in for! 

Sally got on board, to give the ladies a bit of river themed info and one or two of the ladies even ventured into the helm, to see the boat controls.  Rachel and I, got cracking with setting up seating and refreshments, awaiting their return.  ‘I think we might have too much food,’ said I.  

It was great to see happy smiles and chattering, as they disembarked the boat, spirits not dampened by a sudden torrential downpour that had everyone running for the welcome shelter of our trusty gazebo’s.  

The showers abated; the sun came out.  Food and drinks were received with gusto as ladies chatted and mingled on picnic blankets.  Some ladies were inspired to draw river pictures and take photos, and many were saying they wished they could do it all again – Tomorrow! 

Rachel Walker – Chief Executive Officer

My favourite day this year was our staff summer outing in Sheffield. Now that the team has grown in numbers, we are all busy with project work, and online meetings are the norm, it is rare that we are all together in the same place at the same time. So to get a date in the diary to spend the day together is always lovely! I’m always amazed at what can be found from RiverFly sampling, so for Sally to share all her knowledge and enthusiasm with us on the day was really inspiring. One of the nicest things about working at DCRT is the team spirit and I always learn so much from everyone and their own areas of interest! 

Matt Duffy – Fisheries Officer

My best moment of 2024 is delivering the Moss Valley woody debris project in August and September. I loved being out with the volunteers delivering practical interventions to improve the habitat of the Moss Brook. And within that Charlotte rescuing a lost pup pup!

Debbie Coldwell – Natural Flood Management Officer

One of my highlights this year was hosting the Yorkshire Natural Flood Management (NFM) Community of Practice at Grassmoor. This network of practitioners, who work hard to reduce flood risk throughout Yorkshire and nearby, have been a big support to me in my role at the trust and I’ve learnt so much from everyone involved whilst visiting and discussing NFM projects around the county. It was a great opportunity for us at the trust to reflect on all the challenges (27 mine shafts to name but one!) and successes of the Slow the Flow to the Calow flood alleviation and habitat improvement scheme at Grassmoor Country Park. The project has taught us so much and thanks to the efforts of volunteers, the local community, particularly the Friends of Grassmoor Country Park, and our partners, the project has been a great success. It’s incredibly rewarding to see the scheme working during heavy rainfall and the new habitats developing and supporting wildlife. We had a great day sharing all the learning from the project and giving back to the Community of Practice.

Sally Hyslop – Community Engagement Officer

Catching dragonflies in glorious sunshine on the beautiful Sprotbrough Ings. I never knew you could catch and handle them in this way, but Rebecca and the team showed me how you can wrangle them in the net by carefully folding back their wings and holding their legs – to allow identification of their features! Dragonflies are excellent indicators of water quality, so seeing the diversity of dragonflies and damselflies has been a real highlight.

Rebecca Ford – Project Assistant

The first proper All Hands On The Don environmental group discussion was my favourite moment of the year. From developing the idea, to trial running, to incorporating feedback, it felt great to get the event up and running. It was a collaborative event with the brilliant artist Dan Jones and his group of volunteers at The Point. Everyone was engaged in the discussion and interested in talking about all things rivers. People were sharing personal experiences, opinions, news, science, and brought a lot of vibrant ideas to the table. After the event everyone said they had a great time – one person even said that they thought it was going to be terrible, but that they actually loved it in the end!

Charlotte Landry-Jennings – Volunteering Officer

My favourite moment was going on our Heritage Walks in Chesterfield and sharing knowledge with volunteers. We were all able to teach one another about different wildlife that we find in woodlands or along the river. I was fascinated learning about galls (abnormal growth on a plant) and easy plant identification tips. It was a nice way to enjoy being alongside each other in blue green spaces and take in all the beautiful surroundings, whilst learning about impressive natural processes! 

Erika Pheonix – Catchment Partnership Officer

I really enjoyed helping to install the woody debris in the Moss Valley, near Sheffield in Summer! It was great to help carry out some practical work in the Moss Brook and it was also a very good workout (who needs the gym?!) helping to anchor the woody debris in place! It’s a beautiful place to spend the day and really satisfying knowing that the woody debris will help to make improvements to the local habitat.

Anthony Cox – Volunteering Officer

This year there are two day that stick out to me, and I could not pick which one to mention. The first would be the Restore Nature Now March that I went on with Rebecca and Erika back in June. I found it to be a very inspiring day in which we made the message of protecting rivers heard! If you would like to read more about this please click here!

The second was our second Skate Park cleanup day in collaboration with the Doncaster Skate Cooperative. The first day we had run earlier in the year was very successful however it was a very rainy and miserable ay hence I want to talk about the second one. We set up our gazebo at the Anchorage Lane skate park in Sprotbrough. It was a very warm day where lots of young people got involved in cleaning up the nearby Swaith Dike and in exchange were given a free skate session at the Doncaster Skate Cooperatives indoor skate park.  It was a really great way to get young people involved in protecting their local river and recently our work at the skate park won an award from the National Rivers Trust for being a great Creative Community Partnership!

To conclude we have had a really great year where we have made a difference the rivers in our catchment and are looking forward to continuing our work in 2025!

Compiled by Volunteering Officer Anthony Cox