Volunteers from the Leeds Building Society recently spent a day clearing scrub and trees at Chevin Forest Park in Otley.

The 12 colleagues from the Treasury team took advantage of the volunteering scheme, which allows all Society employees a day’s paid leave each year to help in the community.

The efforts of the volunteers on valuable heathland will aid the wildlife and environment, whilst helping to improve facilities for visitors.

Emily Flynn, trainee ALM analyst, said: “We all had a fantastic day at Otley Chevin working with a ranger on conservation tasks to remove trees which were endangering the heathland.

“It was a great opportunity to spend time with our team outside of work whilst also helping a good cause. I would definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to arrange their own volunteering day.”

Pete Banks, countryside ranger at Leeds City Council Countryside and Parks Team, said: “On Behalf of Leeds City Council, thank you so much to the great team from Leeds Building Society.

“They did an excellent job working on one of the rarest and most important habitats within West Yorkshire. We hope to see them again in the future.”

Pictured (L-R) are Dorota Higgins, Harry Heaton, Melissa Broadbelt, Mark Taylor, Nick Akhondi, James Cartman, Emily Flynn, Wendi Hernandez, Paul Jennings, Bobby Heywood and Matthew Mitchell.