Volunteers are vital to the ongoing maintenance and restoration of Cockatoo Island.
There are three main groups of volunteers based at Cockatoo Island:

Heritage Restoration Volunteers

The heritage restoration volunteer team consists of mostly retired tradesmen and women and engineers. They include boilermakers, carpenters, shipwrights, electricians, electrical and structural engineers, but even those without specific technical skills are welcome. Good handyman skills and a passionate interest in maritime machinery and industrial heritage are all that's required. The team's restorations include the Captain's barge from HMAS Sydney and Mort's Dock Steam Crane, one of the oldest surviving steam cranes in Australia.

Check out the restoration team in action!

Gardening Volunteers

The Cockatoo Island gardeners have planted out many areas of Cockatoo Island, including both ornamental gardens around the newly refurbished holiday houses and native gardens around the campground. They have transformed the once barren and neglected gardens into beautiful reminders of the island's past.

Visitor Services Volunteers

Visitor Services volunteers meet and greet visitors as they arrive on the island at the Visitor Information Centre. Volunteers help orientate visitors with Visitor Guides and Audio tours, plus provide sales assistance should visitors wish to purchase a momento of their visit. Please note: visitor centre volunteers also staff our visitor centre at North Head in Manly.

Event Volunteers

Volunteers play a vital role in ensuring that Harbour Trust events like New Years Eve, Biennale of Sydney, and one-off events are a success. Volunteers help greet visitors, hand out programmes, sell merchandise, assist visitors & supervise art exhibits, as well as behind the scenes roles which are vital to the running of a successful event.

To become a Cockatoo Island volunteer or for more details contact Catherine Enright at info@harbourtrust.gov.au
Apply to join our Volunteer Team