Forestry England is the country’s largest land manager, responsible for growing, shaping and caring for 1,500 forests for the enjoyment and benefit of all.
Forestry England provide over 1,800 miles of walking, running and cycling trails, supply England’s largest amount of home-grown, sustainably-produced timber, and conserve thousands of plant and animal species.
Why have they taken action?
Forestry England is an executive agency sponsored by the Forestry Commission, which was founded in 1919 to restore the nation’s woods and forests following the First World War and the passing of the Forestry Act.
As the forests grew, so too did the interest in forests as a place for outdoor recreation and public access. Today the nation’s forests are a vital source of sustainable timber, a home for wildlife to thrive and a place for people to connect with nature and enjoy themselves.
Forestry England are experts in bringing people and forests together and this relationship with nature is even more essential since the COVID pandemic.
The Forestry England team believe that forests enhance people’s quality of life, providing places to enjoy including watching wildlife, walking, riding bikes and playing among the trees.
“The more connected people are with forests, hopefully the more they will care for them and nature,” says Ellen Devine from the organisation.
There is a financial benefit to increasing the number of visitors to a site, but the Forestry England team also see it as their moral duty to provide beautiful forest spaces for everyone to benefit from.
How have they done it?
Inclusive forests
The Forestry England team are always looking for ways to improve the accessibility and inclusivity of the nation’s forests.
They work closely with groups who face specific access barriers to best understand what works and what doesn’t work for them. For example, considerations for this work include:
- physical access barriers
- transport options to and from site
- toilets – accessible to a wide range of needs
- shelter
- places to rest
- waymarking.
Forestry England also aim to provide a range of path lengths and terrain types to cater for different abilities and interests. Waymarking is particularly important to ensure people know from the outset how far the route is, where it goes and what the terrain is like.
The team recently carried out ‘inclusive forest site audits’ at 19 forests. Funded by Sport England, these audits included aspects of environmental sustainability such as active travel and passenger transport to sites.
The results of these audits and work with the relevant community groups will be used to create more inclusive forest spaces.
Virtual access
Forestry England provide virtual access to the forest online, for those who cannot physically get out into the forest. This includes a downloadable ‘forest wellbeing journal’ and 360-degree videos of a forest to watch at home.
“We’re taking the forest to the people who, for whatever reason, can’t make it to the forest themselves,” says Ellen.
This work has led to a project with Dorothy House Hospice Care in Wiltshire, who are providing these forest videos through virtual reality headsets to patients who are receiving end-of-life care.
Forests for Everyone
Forestry England, like the outdoor sector in general, recognise that the diversity of forest visitors does not always reflect the diversity of the site’s local community.
The Forests for Everyone programme is working to connect more diverse communities with forests. Different groups can have different access requirements or may not be aware of the forests available to them.
“Research has shown that those people with poor health outcomes and less access to nature have the biggest health benefits when they do access nature,” adds Ellen.
To enable populations with the greatest health inequalities to access the nation’s forests, the Forestry England team partner with established community organisations who already have trusted relationships with these groups.
For example, by partnering with the local Crisis UK team, Forestry England can provide activities and experiences to these local people who may have never otherwise visited the forest.
Social prescribing projects
Forestry England’s social prescribing project ‘Feel Good in the Forest’ aims to support people with mild-to-moderate health conditions to access forests for their wellbeing.
The Feel Good in the Forest sites provide a range of activities throughout the week that are free to take part in. For example, activities can include:
- cycling sessions
- guided wellbeing walks
- gentle exercise classes or Tai Chi
- hands-on outdoor activities, such as gardening
- group singing.
Outcomes
Forestry England has seen many of the Feel Good in the Forest and Forests for Everyone guests return, coming back as visitors or as volunteers.
Through these projects there has been an increase in volunteers at the sites. These are giving back to the forest and the project that helped them, bringing valuable experience and insight so more people can enjoy the project.
Forestry England has found that by engaging and building a relationship with the local community, people are more likely to protect and respect the forest, also reducing anti-social behaviour.
How might you adopt these principles to ensure inclusion is considered as part of any sustainability initiative?
Top tips
- Work with the groups you are trying to help
- Don’t let perfection be the enemy of progress
- You can’t do this alone: work with others
- ‘Unpick and connect’
