Started in north-east England in 2015, MammalWeb aims to improve our knowledge of British mammals through the use of motion-sensing camera traps. Fundamental to the project is the involvement of local communities and individuals who act as citizen scientists. They contribute to the collection and analysis of the camera trap photographic data. Here, we jointly describe our experiences as a partnership between Belmont Community School and Durham University. School students became citizen scientists and ecological ambassadors who took part in research and designed outreach materials for their local community. We discuss what we learned and the resulting mutual benefits. [This article was co-authored by the the MammalWeb citizen science project, including student contributors Mackenzie Austin, Stephen Dooley, Alexander Ellison, Caitlin Fenwick, Michael Garland, Poppy Humphrey, Hope Proudlock, Alice Robson, Cameron Steer and Lily Turnbull and other contributing co-authors Lorraine Coghill, Julie Ryder, Vivien T. Kent, Steven Bradley, Russell A. Hill, Roland Ascroft, and Philip Stephens.]