New pathways for health and well-being

 

Research to understand and overcome barriers to accessing woodlands

Swing park,
Motherwell

Fixing bat boxes,
Langlee

Resting on guided walk,
Drumchapel

Summary

Scotland maintains and nurtures an exceptional natural heritage and evidence shows that having access to woodlands and green space is beneficial for mental and physical health well-being. However, the evidence also suggests that the benefits are unevenly distributed and many groups of people are noticeably absent or failing to gain access to the natural environment.

A literature review revealed that there are a range of barriers affecting access to woodlands and green space, and affecting people’s physical activity rates:

• Lack of knowledge
• Negative perceptions, fears and safety concerns
• Lack of motivation
• Lack of time
• Physical accessibility
• Lack of physical fitness
• Feeling unwelcome
• Lack of reasonable facilities
• Conflicts of use.

Research approach

The overall aims of this research were to:

• Better understand the barriers that might affect people accessing woodlands in Scotland for health and well being
• Identify, prioritise and promote potential opportunities to overcome these barriers.

A case study action research approach was undertaken and targeted community groups under-represented in woodland and green space use were identified, such as those on low incomes. The work also focused on under-represented groups that were in close proximity to an existing green space initiative.

Four of the five case studies focused on urban/peri-urban localities and under-represented groups as the literature suggests that this is where the greatest need lies. These are also the areas that appear to be targeted by green space initiatives.  The fifth case study, set in the Ardnamurchan Peninsula raises awareness about rural isolation and a sense of losing a traditional rural craft skill base.

Findings

Similar issues to those found in the existing literature were raised in this research. When these were investigated in the context of people’s everyday lives, they arose in a number of ways:

A lack of knowledge, or awareness about what local and other woodlands have to offer appears to be significant only in so far as the groups lacked the familiarity of regular use. Their habit and knowledge was often influenced by their perceptions, or by the ‘reputation’ of the area. In respect of locations further afield, many people were unaware of their access rights and lacked the confidence to go where they might not be welcome or where they were unfamiliar with the quality of the terrain.

In exploring motivation with the target groups, many of them did not appear to be very motivated by the idea of accessing woodlands. They lacked the habit and they did not anticipate this to be a positive experience. However, we found that when we arranged for them to go out and experience an activity, in the course of their day-to-day routines the groups enjoyed it. It seems that ‘taster’ activities can provide the motivation to repeat the experience if the activity can be fitted into everyday lives.

Physical accessibility is affected by many factors, from the quality of the woodland and the quality of the terrain to the extent to which woodland areas are accessible for people without cars. Surveys suggest that 86% of people visiting woodlands arrive by car but this is not the case for small areas of woodland in and around towns and villages and these are the areas most often accessed by our target groups. We found that if the woodland is not connected to a community by an off-road path, even in villages that are surrounded by woodlands, it is inaccessible for pedestrian use.

Personal safety was a recurring and important issue across the case studies, and one that has been explored in some detail. We found that some of the concerns for personal safety were also defined by the cultural expectations of belonging to a particular group.

Overall the most important conclusion is that the barriers to access are less about the single issues discussed above and more to do with wider factors. The findings indicate that complexity, local contingencies and life-stage are equally if not more important in determining who will use a particular woodland and for what purpose. 

In considering the implications for Forestry Commission Scotland in its future strategy the point is made that a new way of working as well as a set of practical actions are needed to address specific barriers. These recommendations can be found in the full report.

Publications

• New pathways for health and well-being in Scotland ^(PDF-1876K)
• New pathways to health and well-being - research summary ^(PDF-262K)

Funders and partners

Forestry Commission Scotland funded this research.

Contact

Liz O’Brien
Forest Research
Social and Economic Research Group
Farnham
Surrey, GU10 4LH

Tel: 01420 22255
Email: liz.obrien@forestry.gsi.gov.uk