Volunteer Banned After Flagging Spelling Errors at National Trust
Let me walk you through a story that’s been stirring quite a bit of debate around volunteering, feedback, and how large organisations respond when they’re criticised from within. It centres on Andy Jones, a 71-year-old National Trust volunteer who says he was effectively blacklisted after pointing out spelling and factual mistakes on the charity’s website.
Andy Jones had given around 14 years of his life to the National Trust. Over that time, he volunteered at well-known locations such as the Woolbeding estate in West Sussex, Hindhead Commons, and the Devil’s Punch Bowl in the Surrey Hills. His work wasn’t minor either. Gardening, general labouring, helping visitors, and dealing with membership queries were all part of his regular routine. By his own account, hundreds of hours were given freely, simply because he believed in what the organisation stood for.
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In 2024, while browsing the Trust’s website, Mr Jones began noticing repeated errors. These ranged from basic spelling mistakes like “toliets” and “permanant”, to grammatical slips such as “take a peak”, and even incorrect spellings of historical names. Concerned that such errors undermined a heritage organisation’s credibility, he took the time to compile a detailed list. This wasn’t dashed off casually; it was carefully put together and then sent to the Trust’s director-general, Hilary McGrady, in the hope the mistakes would be corrected.
No response came. A follow-up email was sent months later, again politely, explaining that the work had been done in good faith and was intended to help. Still, no acknowledgement was received. By early 2025, frustration had clearly set in. After deciding to step away from volunteering, a strongly worded email was sent to his local manager, expressing anger at what he felt was being ignored after so much unpaid effort.
That email changed everything. Mr Jones was told that his language did not align with the organisation’s values and that his relationship with the Trust had “irreversibly broken down”. As a result, it was stated that he would no longer be considered for any volunteer role at any National Trust property.
Mr Jones has since admitted that the language he used was inappropriate. He has also explained that at the time he was dealing with stage-two prostate cancer, saying the stress of illness and silence from senior management had pushed him over the edge. Despite everything, he has said he still believes the National Trust is a brilliant concept, though he feels its leadership needs renewal.
The Trust, for its part, has insisted that volunteers are not banned simply for pointing out errors, and that exclusions usually follow a pattern of incidents. Still, the case has raised uncomfortable questions about how criticism, especially from long-serving volunteers, is handled.
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