E-Newsletter 7

Issue 7: Spring 2011

The Lake District special 

 Grasmere, credit Si Homfray, copyright Hammer Design

Dear Community Champions, 

This issue of our Mosaic newsletter puts the focus on the Lake District - possibly the most well-known of our National Parks. Many of you visited the Lake District at our first annual event back in March 2010, and may remember its dramatic and spectacular lakes and mountains. 

Our next annual event, in the New Forest 9-11 September, will introduce a very different but equally stunning setting: ancient woodland full of wild ponies, donkeys, deer and even boar. It's a particularly tranquil landscape - especially when the sun shines through the leaves of the open forest. And its flatness should make the mountain biking an easier endeavour! 

So mark your diaries for what will be our last Mosaic annual event: 9-11 September.

But until then, enjoy this exploration of the Lake District and I hope it inspires you to plan some visits of your own as we near spring and summer. 

As always, it's great to hear from you so if you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to get in touch. 

Nina  

Reawakening my childhood memories by Aisha Mirza,

Mosaic Community Champion

Aisha Mirza at Ilam Hall, Peak District credit Victor de Jesus, copyright Mosaic.

Driving up the M6 out of Manchester it doesn’t take long before I have left the hectic hustle bustle of city life behind.  Soon the concrete jungle and suburban dwellings are replaced with wide open spaces.  With the sloping sensual curves of the hills that emerge one is overwhelmed by a sense of calm and peace.

After only a mere hour and a half’s drive from my home, there outstretched before me is one of the largest and most spectacular National Parks, the Lake District.  With the remarkable and stunning beauty of this landscape it is obvious why this was the home of inspiration, for poets, writers and artist such as William Wordsworth, Beatrix Potter and John Ruskin to name but a few.

I wanted to be involved with the Mosaic project because it was close to my heart, as I already had a thirst for the outdoors, but my real motivation was for the communities I serve.  Knowing that many have never had the opportunity to visit a National Park before, and that some never leave the city unless it is on a plane to a far-off land, it was an opportunity I couldn’t refuse! 

I had the privilege of visiting the National Parks since childhood, with picnics on the lakeshore, leisurely boat rides and walks through the greenest and most spectacular landscapes I’d ever seen.  As time went by those good times became memories and a busy life of juggling work, family and children left little time for anything else.

Working as a youth group leader and being a mother of three children, I tingled all over with excitement, as all my own childhood memories came flooding back, and the thought of being able to share those experiences with the youngsters in my group as well as my children filled with me sheer joy!

I’ve been serving as a Community Champion for a year now and my experiences of all those involved, from Rangers to Park Authority staff, has always been a warm and welcoming one. The Lake District greets everyone with open arms regardless of race, colour or creed.  

Mosaic has opened the doors to my childhood once more, reawakening memories that I now can actively share with people of my community, my family and friends. 

An update from Lucy McQuillan, Team Leader for the Communications and Learning team at the Lake District National Park Authority. 

Group at Sheffield Pike, Lake District, credit Belinda Turnbull, copyright LDNPA.

Meeting people through Mosaic has given my working life an element of richness and added hugely to the variety of my role here in the Lake District. Having the opportunity to meet so many fantastic people and sharing a love of being outdoors in such a beautiful place has been a real pleasure!

We had a fun and inspiring 2010 with Mosaic.  In July, some of our Community Champions attended a very successful Community Spirit event at Brockhole Visitor Centre.  This annual celebration of diversity, through art and music (including a very loud and lively samba band) really brought life and energy to the centre!

We organised two group leader visits in 2010, the first to Coniston in June at Holly How YHA.  Highlights included an exhilarating and extremely humorous canoe session resulting in a few wet people by the end of the day!

Champions enjoyed a fact-finding weekend in Ullswater in October.  Three Lake District National Park Members joined the group and heard how they have been promoting the national park.  During the weekend, the group enjoyed a boat ride, courtesy of Ullswater Steamers, and a guided walk with two of our volunteer event leaders.

Members and staff also had the opportunity to hear about issues facing people from BME communities coming to the Lakes.  And there were useful suggestions to enhance visits and an offer to coordinate a diversity awareness day for staff and members.

Our Champions also helped us promote the Lake District National Park at last year’s Preston Mela.  It was great example of how Mosaic has helped us reach new audiences.

This final year of Mosaic will see us concentrating on inviting and supporting our Champions to become Lake District National Park volunteers.  This way they will get all the benefits of our existing 450 volunteers and will ensure the legacy of Mosaic continues and grows.  

Better than Everest!

Derwentwater, Lake District, copyright HF Holidays.

On Saturday 14th May there will be a once in a lifetime opportunity to walk with a mountaineering legend, Sir Chris Bonington.  Sir Chris is helping us to celebrate the Campaign for National Parks (CNP) 75th anniversary by leading one of three sponsored walks in his glorious Lake District National Park. 

Sir Chris will lead just 25 walkers on the most challenging walk, the 9 mile Grizedale Horseshoe, and for those walkers who prefer a more gentle pace there will be a 3 mile and 6 mile circular walk at Derwentwater. Bordered by woods and towering crags, Derwentwater is hailed as 'Queen of the Lakes', and is surrounded by some of the most magnificent scenery in the Lake District.

The walks are being generously supported by HF Holidays and all walks begin and end at their property Derwent Bank.  Afternoon tea with Sir Chris is available to everyone who completes their walk.

All the money raised will go towards our campaigns to protect our National Parks. To register for one of the walks please email liz@cnp.org.uk.

Discover the Lakes with Kabeer Bostan, Mosaic Project Officer

Kabeer Bostan relaxing on Coniston Water, Lake District, copyright Mosaic.

The Lakes are a place I have felt real heart pounding adrenaline and have provided some of my most memorable personal challenges and group successes.  I’ve jumped off a 15 foot high bridge into a stream of ice cold mountain water, and faced one of my greatest personal challenges - scaling up striding edge on Helvellyn.  I’ve taken youth groups out at the end of autumn when most places are bleak and miserable, and found landscapes that still managed to impress and inspire. 

The Lakes are more than an adventure playground, it’s a place that manages to arouse the spirit of discovery and exploration, while providing ample space for quiet reflection and relaxation.  The lakes, tarns, rivers, coastline and mountains offer exciting opportunities for recreation. But remember, these can be among the most unsafe places if you are not prepared.

The biggest of the National Park family, the Lake District offers inspiration, recreation and awe inspiring beauty in abundance.  With the highest peaks in the country and 14 lakes, the Lake District is definitely seen as the adventure holiday capital of England.  The National Park is steeped in history, culture and creativity; from the copper mines of Coniston to the Ullswater Steamers.  Not to forget the writings of poet and influential social activist, John Ruskin. 

So what are you waiting for, why not find your next adventure in the Lake District?  

The public loves the Lakes and Dales - it’s official! By Ruth Chambers, Deputy Chief Executive & Head of Policy

River Lune, credit Simon Warner, copyright Natural England

CNP is delighted by the findings of a public consultation on the possible extension of the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales National Parks, which shows clear public support for the proposals with at least 68% of all respondents supporting the designation of each of the five proposed extension areas as National Park. The consultation results suggest that an overwhelming majority of people, including residents, support the principle of designation.

Ruth Chambers, Deputy Chief Executive at the Campaign for National Parks, welcomed the findings:

‘It’s good news that there is such strong public support for the extension of these National Parks but then that’s hardly surprising given the stunning landscapes that are being discussed - areas like the northern Howgills, Mallerstang and Borrowdale in Westmorland are all of undeniable National Park quality and represent unfinished business from the 1950s, when the Park boundaries were first devised. The sooner that the National Park extensions can be completed the better so that the areas can begin to enjoy the benefits that National Park designation brings’.

Natural England’s Board agreed on 2 March to proceed to the next stage of public consultation on possible extensions to the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales National Parks. There will now be a further consultation on revised boundary changes and possibly a public inquiry to examine these in detail. Eventually, the decision on whether or not to expand the National Parks will be made by the Secretary of State. 

Get into National Parks by Amy Peters, Senior Policy Researcher

This year CNP turns 75.  It all began in 1936 when a group of committed outdoor enthusiasts came together to campaign for the protection of Britain's finest landscapes.  Today CNP continues this good work by ensuring that these stunning landscapes are both enjoyed and looked after by all.  

To celebrate the anniversary, CNP wants to encourage more people to ‘Get into National Parks’.  There are a number of ways in which you can do this – you can find out more about why we need National Parks and what threats they face, you can join us at one of our celebratory events, or you can enjoy these fantastic places.  You can find out all you need to know on the CNP website (www.cnp.org.uk).

In the words of CNP's President Ben Fogle: “I travel all over the world and see amazing landscapes but I am still moved by the beauty that exists here.  Our National Parks are a vital asset, our ‘green’ national treasures, and it is essential that they remain so”.  

Mosaic starts in the South Downs by Sarah Wilson, Mosaic Project Officer

Sarah Wilson in Kingley Vale, copyright Mosaic.

I’m now into my third month as Mosaic’s project officer for its newest area – the South Downs National Park. The South Downs was only confirmed as a National Park in March 2010 and Mosaic has been able to jump straight in with a twelve month project there.

It’s a stunning area of surprisingly open countryside with the famous dramatic white cliffs dropping into the sea near Eastbourne at its eastern end and then a swathe of open countryside just inland stretching for a hundred miles to Winchester in the west. The South Downs is on the doorstep of cities like Brighton and Portsmouth and only an hour by train from London, making it the easiest open space for many people in the area to reach. While the countryside isn’t wild like some of our other National Parks, I’m constantly surprised by its space, so different from the towns and cities that surround it. 

During my fist months with Mosaic, I’ve been focussing on recruiting new Community Champions for the South Downs and enjoying getting to know Mosaic, its team and some of the existing Community Champions. I’ve also met staff from the new National Park Authority and the South Downs Society, both keen to engage with South Downs Community Champions. Before joining Mosaic, I’d been living abroad for some years and it’s fantastic to reconnect with the area and get others involved in and enjoying the South Downs. 

Now as we head fast towards the summer months, I looking forward to getting into the park more, both with new Community Champions and with Champions based in London.  

 Setting up as a CNP speaker by Sandra Gann

Sandra Gunn under Hellvelyn, credit S.Gunn

Five years’ ago I retired from a major hospital serving East London and moved to Northumberland to a completely rural community.  It felt like going back to a time and lifestyle I had last known in the 1950s.  How was I going to build up a life in such a different environment and one in which I knew no one?  I had been an enthusiastic member of a London mountaineering club during my urban years and enjoyed many weekends in hill country in different parts of the United Kingdom. I loved our country’s ‘wild’ places and jumped at the chance to present National Parks to others. 

So armed with a collection of CNP slides, and some of my own, and a sample script I set out to sell CNP, and myself.  I created a flyer and a letter of introduction and sent it to the rather meagre list of local societies I found in the library.  I carried flyers with me and handed them out to everyone I met. I sent an article to the local newspaper. It was very slow going in the first year. 

The breakthrough came when I was asked to speak to the local Women’s Institute (10 members in a hamlet without church, nor pub, nor post office). Of course, once people have heard you, your name is quickly passed around to other organisations, as they are all desperate for a continuing supply of speakers. I found that most groups wanted a talk to be over in an hour including questions so that they can get on with the most important part of the meeting – refreshments and chat!

No two groups are the same.  I have ‘played’ to 350 U3A members in a city theatre 80 miles away.  The other end of the scale is a group of 6 members of a church group in a remote hill area. It is quite a privilege to participate in these meetings that reflect another way of life. 

I do not have any professional knowledge of the countryside but I particularly enjoy drawing on the history of the movement.  I get such pleasure from our wild places it is good in some small way give something back by continuing to support CNP and, perhaps, to inspire others to do the same. 

If you would like to find out more about CNP’s Speaker Service, please contact Adrian Thornton by email adrian@thorntona.fsnet.co.uk.

Help promote woodland in our National Parks by Gail Graham, VisitWoods Project Manager

Spring Beech Forest credit istockphoto.com Pawel Aniszewski

There are over 1,100 woods within our National Parks and this time of year they are a great place for families to enjoy time outdoors together and to witness the beauty of spring's arrival. VisitWoods.org.uk  - developed by the Woodland Trust in partnership with other leading organisations such as the Forestry Commission, the National Trust, Wildlife Trusts and RSPB, launched on the 16th February. 

Anyone can enter a postcode and search nearly 14,000 woods across the UK, giving easy access to information on nearly all publicly accessible woods.  Funded through the Access to Nature programme, it is the UK’s first interactive website to bring all major woodland-owning organisations into one searchable database. 

The VisitWoods project is also working with a number of partner organisations representing disadvantaged young people, families, older people and people with disabilities, as well as the wider public to open up the benefits of woodland to new audiences. 

The VisitWoods project needs your help to build the information on this essential woodland portal.  Go to the website and register to share your experiences of the woods within your area, adding the key features and facilities to the woods you have visited, as well as uploading photographs, recommendations and comments to the site. In this way, you will help promote the woods within your own park and encourage even more visitors.