National Plant Monitoring Scheme: 10th Anniversary Celebrations, Northern Ireland

The National Plant Monitoring Scheme (NPMS) turns 10 years old in 2025, and we are looking to celebrate ten years among the wildflowers, with all our volunteers and supporters. This autumn, we're highlighting the incredible achievements of our volunteers and supporters by hosting a series of celebrations, both online and in person.

On Saturday 18th October, we’d love for you to join our online celebration event from the comfort of your own home, with speakers, workshops, a panel discussion and more! You can find out more about the online celebration and book your place here.

On Saturday 25th October, we are holding a volunteer day in Lough Neagh Discovery Centre in Armagh, to meet up with other NPMS volunteers, compare stories, get support in areas you’re finding challenging, and enjoy a networking lunch. We're also planning talks on botanical photography (focusing on smartphone photography) and the community approach to surveying your square, as well as plant ID and indicator workshops. Come along and reserve your free spot now!

On Friday 14th November, we will also hold a day in Belfast for organisations and other stakeholders who are involved with NPMS - whether that be providing locations to do surveys, or giving CPD days for your employees to volunteer. Please contact kim.lake@bsbi.org for more information.

The updated programme for our NPMS Volunteer Day on the 25th October will include:

• Overview of NPMS project and The future of NPMS/the next 10 years.
• NPMS Volunteer opportunities.
• Talks on Botanical Photography and The Community Group /Team Approach to monitoring squares
• Interactive learning and networking opportunities

Come along and celebrate with us: reserve your free space now!

Extra support for NPMS volunteers travelling to the Volunteer Day on 25th October

We are pleased to offer a limited number of travel subsidies (up to £20) to volunteers that request it, on a first-come-first-served basis, to support their attendance at the event. To indicate your interest in this support, please tick the Volunteer Travel Support box when you complete your booking.

The venue

Lough Neagh Discovery Centre in Oxford Island is a designated National Nature Reserve situated on the peninsula in the southern shores of Lough Neagh in County Armagh.

Getting here

• Train services run to Lurgan from Belfast via Lisburn. See the timetable here.
• Bus services to Lurgan are limited, with the TransLink 352a providing the closest service to the Centre. Find route and timetable details here.
• Free car parking is available on a first come, first served basis. Where possible, we encourage you to carpool with other attendees - once you've booked, we'll send you more info about how to do this.

Accessibility

Please see the access guide for the venue for more information. Please feel free to email Kim Lake at kim.lake@bsbi.org, if you would like to discuss your own accessibility needs.

Refreshments / catering

• Teas, coffees and biscuits will be provided throughout the day (please let us know on the booking form, if you have any dietary requirements related to this). 
• We are finalising the lunch options, and will tell you more once you've registered.

Cost

This event is free to attend but registration is essential.

Filming and photographs

We hope to record the talks and upload them later to the NPMS YouTube channel – we would also like to film and/or photograph attendees listening to the talks and viewing the exhibits, so we can use the footage and images for publicity purposes. Please let us know when you book if you do not wish to be included in any such footage or photographs. We also encourage you to take photographs at the event and will set up a folder where these can be shared.

Contact

Want to know more about this event before you book? Email Kim Lake, BSBI's Training Officer for the Northern Ireland Botanical Skills Project: kim.lake@bsbi.org

Want to know more about the NPMS? Email Rachel Murphy: Rachel.Murphy@plantlife.org.uk 

Volunteer enquiries: support@npms.org.uk