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Press Release

STRONGER LINKS BETWEEN ETHNIC MINORITY COMMUNITIES AND NATIONAL PARKS

Ben Fogle, President of the Campaign for National Parks (1), joins us in celebrating the start of Mosaic (2), a three-year national project which will engage ethnic minority communities with the National Parks.  Mosaic will develop Community Champions for National Parks within black and ethnic minority groups in 20 cities across England.  Mosaic will provide training to enable local Champions to promote the National Parks in their communities, organise visits to National Parks and establish cultural events and other activities to stimulate an interest in the natural environment.

The project – which is funded by Natural England through Access to Nature (3) as a part of the Big Lottery Fund’s Changing Spaces programme – will provide Champions with a range of new skills including in leading walks, map reading, fundraising, working with the media and campaigning.  This will help to ensure that the knowledge and experiences that they gain will continue to be shared once the project has ended.

The project will also focus on the organisations which run the 9 National Parks in England, who have committed to taking a major step forward in their attempts to reach a broader audience – for example by promoting National Parks in urban and cultural centres and helping their staff to become more aware of particular ethnic minority needs.  Accommodation provider the Youth Hostels Association (4) will also be a key project partner, and is committed to giving visitors from ethnic minorities a warm welcome at its extensive network of hostels within the National Parks.

The Mosaic project will be hosted by the Campaign for National Parks, which has 8 years’ experience working on the ground to engage ethnic minority communities with the National Parks.  CNP will build on its previous experience and its network of over 200 influential leaders of local ethnic minority communities who are already promoting actively the National Parks in their communities.

CNP’s President Ben Fogle welcomes the Mosaic project:

“Going to the countryside inspired me when I was a child, and led me to pursue the adventures I enjoy now as an adult. Mosaic is a fantastic project that works to make sure that everyone has that opportunity to experience and be amazed by the most spectacular landscapes in our country."

Huw Irranca-Davies, Natural Environment Minister, said:

“Everyone should have the opportunity to enjoy the great outdoors and to get close to nature. Green spaces are good for our health and well-being.

“The work being done by the Campaign for National Parks and community groups through Mosaic is not only breaking down barriers, but is also forging lasting links so that more people from minority communities and under-represented groups are attracted to our National Parks and can enjoy some of the most beautiful scenery anywhere in the world.

“Projects like Mosaic help create social cohesion within communities nationwide and the government wholeheartedly supports the work they do.”

Nurjahan Ali Arobi, a member of the Bradford community, spoke of her personal experience as a Mosaic Community Champion:

“Mosaic gives me the skills and confidence to promote the Yorkshire Dales and help my community to access the National Park.  Before we would not have been aware of what was available there in terms of facilities, let alone the sheer natural beauty and that it was a place for us all to enjoy."

This year is the 60th anniversary of the 1949 Act of Parliament which enabled the creation of the National Parks for public benefit and the enjoyment of all.  Sixty years after the Act was passed, CNP wants to ensure that the National Parks remain relevant to all people in contemporary 21st century Britain.

Mosaic will be launched at the Dales Countryside Museum at Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales National Park at 11:30am on Wednesday 29th July (5). Speakers will include Huw Irranca-Davies MP, the Government Minister responsible for National Parks, CNP President Ben Fogle and Mosaic Community Champion Nurjahan Ali Arobi.

For further information, please contact:

Mosaic Programme Manager Nina Arwitz: 020 7924 4077 ext. 227.

Natural England Press Office: 0845 603 9953.

Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 020 7211 1888.

Notes to editors

1.     The Campaign for National Parks (CNP) is the national charity that campaigns to protect and promote National Parks for the benefit and quiet enjoyment of all.

2.     Mosaic is a partnership between CNP, the Youth Hostels Association and the 9 organisations that run the National Parks in England: the Broads Authority, Dartmoor National Park Authority (NPA), Exmoor NPA, Lake District NPA, New Forest NPA, North York Moors NPA, Northumberland NPA, Peak District NPA and the Yorkshire Dales NPA.  Access to Nature has provided £932,314 toward this £1.7 million project, with match funding from Nationwide Building Society and the partners themselves.

3.    Access to Nature is run by Natural England and is part of The Big Lottery Fund’s Changing Spaces programme launched in November 2005 to help communities enjoy and improve their local environments. Natural England manages this £25 million Lottery-funded programme on behalf of a consortium of twelve national environmental organisations comprising BTCV, British Waterways, Environment Agency, Forestry Commission, Greenspace, Groundwork UK, Land Restoration Trust, The National Trust, Natural England, RSPB, the Wildlife Trusts and the Woodland Trust. Through this programme, it is Natural England’s ambition to create opportunities for people from all backgrounds to have greater access to our natural environment and bring a lasting change to their awareness and understanding as well as improved links to the natural world, which many of us can take for granted. For further information about Access to Nature visit www.naturalengland.org.uk/accesstonature. For further information about the Big Lottery Fund, its programmes and awards visit www.biglotteryfund.org.uk.

4.       The Youth Hostels Association runs 222 accommodation sites across England and Wales, 87 of which are in a National Park, and provides over 2 million overnight stays for members and guests each year.

Location: Dales Countryside Museum, Hawes
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