The Catch My Drift project is working to protect and revive threatened habitats and provide refuge for different species on Northumberland Wildlife Trust’s 185-hectare East Chevington reserve. National Lottery players via a grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund support the project.

The national awards recognize and celebrate the outstanding contributions adults and young people are making to wildlife recording and data sharing, which is helping to improve understanding of the UK’s biodiversity.

Sophie, from Hartburn, was runner up in the NBN Newcomer Award category for achieving an astounding amount in a short space of time thanks to her boundless energy and sheer hard work - from talking to over 700 people to running 35 different events and various drop in sessions on the Druridge Bay reserve.

With her team of volunteers and members of the public, Sophie has collected over 1,700 individual records of 438 different species, including some brand new ones in a 12–month period 

Speaking about her success, Elaine More, Northumberland Wildlife Trust Development Manager says: “What Sophie has achieved in the past 12 months is outstanding. There is nothing she won’t do to get species records - from crawling forwards and backwards through hedges to wading through reed beds and water. Everybody in the organization has nothing but praise and respect for her.”