VOLUNTEER
Are you interested in volunteering at our 2025 Singing with Nightingales events and joining our team in the springtime woodland?
About SWN
Singing with Nightingales is an extraordinary series of springtime events where musicians duet with wild nightingales in a secluded woodland setting. The events are hosted by folk singer, writer and naturalist, Sam Lee with 40-60 people participating each night.
Each evening is joined by a special guest musician and includes performances by the campfire, a nature walk in the woods, food, drink and post-dinner tales of the nightingale’s life, songs and folklore. Once darkness has fallen, the group walk in silence through the woodland paths to find the wild nightingales. Here, everyone gathers in close to listen to the musician’s sublime duet with this endangered and revered bird, singing together into the night.
Find out more about what Singing With Nightingales involves here.
Volunteering with Us
We are looking for community-minded, nature-loving, weather-resistant, committed and joyful people to join the SWN camp in Sussex this spring.
Dates
Volunteers would be with us for 4-6 days over the following blocks of dates:
Thurs 10 - Mon 14 April
Wed 16 - Tues 22 April
Thurs 24 - Tues 29 April
Fri 2 - Tues 6 May
Thurs 8 - Mon 12 May
Thurs 15 - Mon 19 May
Sun 25 - Thurs 29 May
To ensure that we offer this volunteering opportunity to as many people as possible, we will recruit different volunteers for each block of dates.
Location
Barcombe, Sussex
What volunteering involves
Our volunteers will help our SWN events run as smoothly and joyfully as possible and will be involved in a wide range of supporting activities. We intend for everyone who is involved in our events, from the participants to the team members, to have a nourishing and enriching experience in nature.
To run our SWN events, we set up a camp in the woodland for two months. This includes a public fireside area with seating and awnings, a temporary kitchen, public and staff camping areas, and storage tents for all supplies. There will be 2-3 volunteers at each time supporting our team across all these areas including:
Stacking wood
Collecting wild herbs for teas
Supporting the preparation of food for team lunches
Tidying the kitchen and washing up
Picking flowers for vases
Lighting candles and lanterns
Tidying compost toilets
Setting up drinks and breakfast tables
Meeting and signing in participants
Adding wood to fires
Serving dinner to participants
Stewarding participants on the night walk to the nightingales
We pride ourselves on bringing together team members who bring a multitude of wisdom and experience to our events, so, during these tasks, there is time to connect with fellow team members as well as enjoy moments of solitude and quiet.
The daily schedule is paced gently, so there is time to enjoy being a springtime visitor to the most glorious bluebell woods and land.
Who we are looking for
Singing with Nightingales is an extraordinary experience that is unlike any other event. We are working in co-creation with a wild bird in a wild woodland and therefore we are looking for volunteers who are as excited and committed to this collaboration as we are.
Our volunteers should be comfortable and enthusiastic about spending all their time outdoors for a series of days. Springtime weather can be unpredictable and sometimes wet and cold, so our volunteers will be prepared to face this with good humour.
The small team onsite spend many hours working alongside each other and becomes a close-knit family for this short stretch of time. We welcome volunteers who are comfortable with living in such close quarters and who are committed to supporting others and considering the needs of the team, as well as themselves.
Our volunteers should be comfortable with taking instructions as well as working on their own initiative. All the tasks are of a practical nature, with lots of walking, carrying and arranging across the site, therefore a good degree of fitness is required.
Practicalities
Transport - Volunteers will need to make their own transport arrangements either driving or arriving at one of the local train stations (Cooksbridge is the nearest) where one of our team can collect you.
Arrival times - Volunteers are requested to arrive during the morning of their first day.
Camping - Our volunteers will be camping in the woods with the SWN team. Ideally, volunteers will have access to their own (or borrowed) camping equipment, including a tent, roll mat, warm sleeping bag, blankets and pillow.
Facilities - We have compost toilets in the woodland and access to campsite showers (showers are located 20 minutes‘ walk from the woodland). There is cold running water in the kitchen and hot water from an urn. There are power sockets in the camp kitchen, but otherwise, the site is off-grid.
Food and drinks - All meals, snacks (vegan) and drinks are provided.
Clothing - It is essential that volunteers are able to come in the right clothing for all-weather work. This includes a warm coat and layers (wool is best) and waterproof coats/trousers for rain. The ground can be wet and muddy so sturdy, waterproof boots are essential (or wellies and thick socks).
Hours - Our events run late into the evening to coincide with the Nightingale’s singing times. Volunteers start working after lunch and usually finish when the participants depart (12.30 am approx).
Team members - The volunteer’s main points of contact will be the Camp Manager and the Front of House Manager. Also on site are the Host, the Artists (a different musician each night), the Producer (not always present) and two other volunteers.
If any of the practicalities listed above are a barrier to volunteering (e.g. travel costs are too high or you don’t have access to camping equipment), please let us know in the application form and we will endeavour to offer support where possible.
How to apply
If you are interested in becoming one of our 2025 volunteers, please complete our application form.