100 years of championing a countryside for all

For almost 100 years, we’ve been standing up for the countryside and the people who live in, work in and enjoy it. We want to make sure it’s accessible to everyone. To mark the United Nations International Day of Persons with Disabilities on 3 December, we are highlighting the urgency of this mission.

CPRE champions equality and diversity for everyone up and down the country. Our passionate volunteers strive to make sure their local green spaces are inclusive. We signed the ‘Outdoors For All’ manifesto, calling for more responsible access to the countryside. And our national staff Allyship Group help ensure the workplace is a safe place and CPRE’s policies reflect that.

In the run-up to our centenary next year, we’re taking a closer look at our campaigns and how, along with our network of local CPRE groups, we’re working to make the countryside a better place for people with disabilities, with work still needed to make it truly a place for everyone.

Countryside Next Door

In late spring this year, people living with visual impairments and sight loss joined CPRE Staffordshire Trustee, Steve Sankey, for a delightful walk from Froghall Wharf along the Caldon Canal to Consall and back.

The event was organised through Mr Sankey’s longstanding association with the visually impaired community, and as part of CPRE Staffordshire’s initiative to ‘Promote our countryside next door.’ This initiative, together with ‘Protecting and Enhancing our countryside,’ forms part of the local group’s threefold mission.

One participant said the walk felt empowering, offering both a sense of independence and the companionship of a like-minded, respectful group – something often missing when walking alone in the wider community.
Encouraged by the success of the day, CPRE Staffordshire Chair Mohammed Khuram hopes to make the walk a twice-yearly event, creating more opportunities for people with sight loss to enjoy the county’s beautiful countryside.

Hedgerow Heroes

This winter, some of our Hedgerow Heroes were adults with learning disabilities, supported by CPRE Oxfordshire, Wild Oxfordshire and FarmAbility.

FarmAbility is a local charity that runs activity programmes on farms, in gardens and in green spaces, where ‘co-farmers’ with learning disabilities take part in practical activities. This enables them to put their existing skills and abilities to good use, while improving physical health and wellbeing, and developing independence.

Hedge-planting isn’t new for the co-farmers. FarmAbility is always on the look-out for opportunities to engage with the local community where co-farmers can create more connections and where their contribution is valued. Normally, co-farmers visit a set location each week, so the chance to get out and work with other people is something they enjoy.

On a cold, sunny Wednesday before Christmas on Otmoor, near Oddington, co-farmers Paul, Harry and Nial were part of a local team planting a hedgerow, which also included a staff member, volunteer and occupational therapy student. They dug holes so that Paul, Harry and Nial could put in the plants, cover the roots with soil, add a cane and guard and tread in each plant. To find out more about hedgerow heroes, click here.

At lunchtime, they were grateful for the hot drinks and home-baked treats provided by Jess from Wild Oxfordshire. The co-farmers loved the chance to chat with new people and find out what football teams they support! By the end of the day, the group had planted several hundred whips, and were tired and happy with this achievement.

Next year, CPRE Oxfordshire plan to work with FarmAbility’s Hedgerow Heroes again! They are hoping to join forces with local environmental groups to help create more hedgerow at various locations across Oxfordshire. They have also secured 80m of hedging material for them to plant at FarmAbility’s site.

Rural affordable housing

As part of our Affordable Housing campaign, we partnered with Habinteg, an accessible social housing provider to spotlight the work they do in rural England. Showcasing the need for more accessible housing in all parts of England, our research in 2024 showed that only 17 out of 45 ‘mainly’ or ‘largely rural’ local authorities had set a target relating to accessible housing delivery.

We spoke to Gail and Carla about their quest to find a suitable, accessible home for their needs. Read more here.

Rooftop solar

We have been pushing hard for rooftop solar on suitable new and existing homes that cuts bills as well as carbon. This is especially important for people with disabilities, who are at a higher risk of fuel poverty, due to lower incomes, a greater dependency on energy because of essential equipment and longer periods of time spent at home.

On Fuel Poverty Awareness Day, whose theme centred around children, we highlighted the risks for disabled children and families, showing how rooftop solar can alleviate fuel poverty by dramatically reducing household energy bills.

Earlier in the year, we threw our support behind the Sunshine Bill, which called for rooftop solar as standard on most new homes. It looks like this is becoming a reality, which we’re celebrating as a win for people and planet.

Better rural buses

We have advocated for better rural buses in our Transport Deserts and Every Village Every Hour reports, highlighting how buses can help support physical mobility, social inclusion and equality. We supported amendments to the Buses Services Bill for minimum service standards that would benefit those with access needs by increasing their ability to get around. Learn more here.

A Centenary and beyond for everyone

CPRE has been working with a range of people and organisations to strive for inclusion and a countryside for all over the years. Now, as we look to the next century, we know we have much more to do to make sure that the countryside is a place that makes everyone feel at home, but we are committed to doing it. We will continue to uplift people with disabilities across all areas of our work. But we can’t do it alone; our network of local groups, members and supporters make this work possible, as well as other charities within our sector.