'The Forward Path for the Isle of Wight Ramblers'
1. Introduction
During 2014/15 the Ramblers nationally developed and approved a 'Vision' to guide
our organisation over the next ten years. Through surveys and General Council
representation IOW Ramblers members have helped to shape these aims. As part
of this vision, the mission or purpose of the Ramblers is summarised asThe Ramblers’ mission is to create a Britain where everyone has the
freedom to enjoy the outdoors on foot and benefits from the experience.
We will protect, improve and enhance the places that people enjoy to
walk and open up new places for them to explore.
We will help people explore their local area and the beauty of the rest of
Britain by making sure paths and green spaces are well maintained and
the rights and freedoms of walkers upheld.
We will help create a world where society understands the benefits of
walking for both recreation and shorter journeys, and where
communities have easy access to high quality places to walk from
attractive urban areas to open spaces in the countryside.
We will support people of all ages and backgrounds so they can
experience the great outdoors on foot, resulting in improvements in
health, wellbeing and happiness.
The full 'Vision' document can be found on the Ramblers website
www.ramblers.org.uk/about-us
Walking aspirations may not rank as a top priority in the grand scheme of national
issues. But every valuable cause in our society deserves its champions. The Isle of
Wight Ramblers are committed to champion the Ramblers National Vision, and we
will endeavour to pursue and implement all of its elements on the Island.
An Isle of Wight Ramblers Workshop was held during April 2015 at which Area and
Group committee members developed a framework around which we can organise
our activities. A comprehensive portfolio of opportunities and aspirations were
identified for each part of this framework.
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2. IOW Ramblers Activities and Organisation Framework
The
Ramblers
Mission or
purpose
FOOTPATHS/ACCESS
WALKING ACTIVITIES/GROUPS
COUNTRYSIDE/OPENSPACES
Working with ROW and other parties to
o Safeguard
o Maintain
o Upgrade
o Extend
the Island's footpath network and open
access areas.
Support, Promote & Organise walking
activities for
o Recreation and exploration
o Health and wellbeing
o Socialising and friendship
o Support of our Island Economy
o Shorter journeys
With conservation partners
o Review the impact of
development plans on
landscape and footpaths
o Protect and enhance our
countryside and open
spaces
ENGAGING & SUPPORTING PEOPLE LEADERSHIP/COORDINATION
Required to
support and
enable our
Mission
Provide a focus in IOW Ramblers to
o Increase membership
o Engage supporters
o Build volunteer capacity
o Develop volunteer skills
o Have fun and bring people
together through social events
The IOW Ramblers Area Council provideso Leadership
o Administration/Communication
o Representation and coordination
of all elements of IOW Ramblers
o General Council representation
o Liaison with Ramblers Nationally
o Financial control
o Coordination of revenue
generation opportunities
PUBLICITY/INFORMATION
o Education about the
benefits of walking
o Promoting the role and
work of the Ramblers.
o Provide information to
assist Island walkers
o Achieve influence in the
Island community
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3. FOOTPATHS/ACCESS
Both nationally and locally the Ramblers are the lead organisation for all aspects of
protecting, maintaining, enhancing and extending footpaths and open access.
Activities covered by this work include1. Monitoring and reporting on footpaths and access areas through a group of 28
footpath reps.
2. Supporting nationally organised surveys such as the 'Big Path Watch'.
3. Members and general public feedback on footpath issues.
4. Developing the use of smart phones as a path survey tool.
5. Provide updates on path condition and closures to walkers.
6. Close liaison with the Rights of Way Department.
7. Holding the Local Authority accountable for their legal footpath responsibilities.
8. Representation on the Local Access Forum.
9. Working with partners such as LDWA, Geo caching and orienteering
organisations, the Scouts, Visit Wight, Walk the Wight, cycling and horse riding
organisations, NT, Parish Councils, Green Gym, Beach Cleaning teams, etc.
10. Building relationships with landowners.
11. Establishing several volunteer teams to help the ROW maintain and enhance the
footpath network.
12. Developing an Island wide footpath improvement and extension strategy, with a
focus on new high value path opportunities and with the aim of making it the
basis of the IOW ROW Improvement plan.
13. Campaigning on local footpath issues.
14. Organising our Donate a Gate scheme to improve access and raise funds for
Ramblers charitable work.
15. Involvement with the Coastal Path Project including surveying the route.
16. Footpath improvement project funding and management.
17. Providing information to encourage the use of open access land.
18. Pursuing 'Lost Way' footpath extension opportunities.
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19. Reviewing planning applications to identify their potential impact on footpaths,
then liaise with the countryside/open spaces team to make appropriate
submissions to the local authority.
20. Using planning applications to create opportunities to enhance the footpath
network.
We already have an extensive group of volunteers involved in many of these
activities. However to cover the full range of opportunities identified we will need to
increase the size of the team. Some of the activities such as Donate a Gate, grant
funded footpath projects and LAF representation are not well integrated with the
general footpath work. We need to review how best to organise this area with
particular emphasis on volunteer leadership skills, ROW legal understanding and
succession planning.
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4. ENGAGING AND SUPPORTING PEOPLE
Currently the IOW Ramblers has an Area Membership Secretary. On an ad hoc
basis we set up training for volunteers and canvas for people to fill volunteer roles.
Group 1. also organises an impressive range of social get togethers.
Across the voluntary sector there is an increasing recognition that to achieve the full
benefits of volunteering, appropriate structures need to be in place that recognise
both the aims of a charity and the needs of the volunteer. In the recent draft
governance review by the Ramblers the role of Volunteer Coordinator at Area level
was identified as a new requirement. As a Volunteer led organisation the Ramblers
relies on volunteers to lead and coordinate its work as well as to carry out direct
mission tasks.
The chart below illustrates numerically the opportunities we have on the Island to
encourage people to progress from active walkers to Ramblers members and onto
volunteering. We should also recognise that supporters as well as Ramblers
members can help us to fulfil our mission.
Estimate
IOW Population
Walking Community
Supporters
Ramblers Members
(Group walkers
Volunteers
Volunteer Organisers
140,000
15-30,000
?
550
200)
80
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Hence it is proposed to set up a new team of people to specifically focus on the
issues required to increase membership and engage more volunteers. We need to
talk to other voluntary organisations to learn from their experience of the role of
volunteer coordination. But our initial thoughts on issues to consider are 1. Liaise with other volunteer teams to coordinate events, walks and publicity to
attract new members.
2. Develop suitable approaches to attract members or supporters from people who
participate in recreational activities such as Health Walks, the Walking Festival,
Walk the Wight, orienteering, LDW, geo caching, Duke of Edinburgh Scheme,
Scouts/Guides, etc.
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3. Develop suitable approaches to attract members or supporters from currently
underrepresented groups such as younger working people, families,
disadvantaged groups, minority groups etc.
4. Ensure that both new and existing members receive relevant information about
Ramblers activities and issues.
5. Organise and promote a suitable programme of social get togethers that would
interest the full range of Island Ramblers members and supporters.
6. Carry out membership surveys to establish members views about the Ramblers,
what their membership expectations are and what the appetite is for each
member is to participate in voluntary work. In particular get a better
understanding of the circa 350 IOW members who do not participate in events or
group walks.
7. Contact lapsed members to understand why they might be leaving.
8. Engage older less active members in suitable activities.
9. Analysis of membership information and statistics to help guide future plans.
10. Liaise with other volunteer teams to establish what volunteer resources are
required, the skill sets needed and the scope for work to be shared out in
manageable bite size tasks.
11. Set up volunteer fairs, volunteer days and similar events.
12. Through surveys, events, get togethers and informal contacts identify potential
volunteers and discuss with them how they match the requirements of
volunteering opportunities. Involve other volunteer organisers in this contact and
assessment work.
13. Support and track new volunteers through an appropriate induction programme.
14. Identify volunteer skill gaps and coordinate development sessions and training
courses to meet the shortfalls. Both Ramblers Central and IOW Community
Action run regular training courses.
15. Some specific development sessions for consideration are
o Experienced/aspiring path rep get together.
o Experienced/aspiring walk leader/back marker get together.
o Experienced/aspiring path maintenance get together.
o Experienced/aspiring event stand manning get together.
16. Establish a suitable recognition and reward programme for IOW Ramblers
volunteers. eg. benefits?, badges, T Shirts, Awards, etc.
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17. Liaise with volunteer organisers to develop succession planning arrangements.
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5. WALKING ACTIVITIES / GROUPS
Across the Isle of Wight a whole range of organisations and clubs organise group
walks. Health Walks in particular run a very popular programme of walks, generally
based on a fixed walk format from a given location. A lot of Ramblers members
attend these sessions. Nationally Walking for Health is now managed by Ramblers
Central and financed mainly by the Macmillan Charity.
Currently IOW Ramblers Group 1. organises a significant weekly walks programme
with mainly retired participants. Most walks in its programme are determined by
walks leaders electing to lead a certain type of walk on a date that suits them. It
contains a sub group of regular 15 mile Saturday walkers comprising a mixture of
ages. There appears to be a shortage of walks leaders willing to lead shorter walks.
A separate Wight Sole Group caters for working age participants with a programme
of fortnightly weekend walks.
We can consider walking activities under the following categories though there is
some overlap between them.
Independent Walkers
This encompasses people who walk on their own or in small friend/family groups.
They may be members of the Ramblers because they value the path work our
organisation carriers out and the services Ramblers provide. We can more actively
engage this group througho Walking routes in leaflets, booklets and online.
o Providing information about footpath conditions.
o Communication about Ramblers work.
o Inviting them to social functions.
o Checking if they wish to volunteer to carry out Ramblers work.
Special Interest Walks
Typically this type of walk is led by a person with a special interest and expertise in a
topic. Their length and timing are geared to the nature of the topic and the
preference of the leader. They may be linked to other activities. This approach can
attract young families. Examples areo Dinosaur/dog! walks.
o Berry/mushroom picking walks.
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o Wild life/wild flower walks.
o History/cultural walks.
o Real ale/stop smoking/speed dating walks.
o Physical challenge/fund raising walks.
o Path survey/litter pick walks.
o Ensure all paths are walked walks.
Many different people lead this sort of walk during the IOW Waking Festival.
Regular Social Group Walks
Typically a group people (often from similar backgrounds) regularly walk together, on
a set day of the week, to do a length of walk they prefer, at locations that are
convenient to them . They appreciate the opportunity to regularly meet a group of
friends. This is the backbone of most Rambling Groups around the country. A
significant proportion of the group take it in turns to recce and lead walks.
Organisation is usually required for the walks schedule, car park start points, car
sharing or public transport arrangements.
The formation of new regular social walking groups on the Island should offer a good
opportunity to increase Ramblers membership from people who are interested in
walking in a group. This spring Group1. has put a regular Sunday morning 5 mile
walk in the programme, this is proving very popular with attendances of 20 to 40
people. We should consider other formats, particularly those that might attract
categories of people other than our traditional base of 'retired with cars' o Weekend walks for 18 to 30 group, perhaps linked to IOW Technical College.
o Regular Bus/Train Walks geared around the Newport/Ryde Bus station hubs.
o A Regular mid week 5-8 mile walk to cater for the popularity shown for the
Sunday 5 mile walks. This could also be attractive for current Health walkers.
o More short summer evening walks. Useful to working people.
Regular walks can serve a dual purpose by choosing routes where path survey work
is required. For example the leader or a helper either on a recce or on the walk itself
can gather information required for leaflets, updating walks books, Walk the Wight
preparations etc.
New walking groups may prefer to operate as a Ramblers Group separate from the
main IOW Group1. As Wight Sole and to some extent Saturday 15 mile walkers
already do. We will need to review how best to coordinate and liaise between
walking groups and the IOW Area Council.
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Walking Holidays and Mainland Day Trips.
Group 1. organises a popular programme of walking holidays and mainland walking
day trips. We ensure that these are promoted in WalkTalk, on our Web site and in
the walks programme. They are open on a first come first serve basis to all IOW
Ramblers members.
Many Ramblers Groups around the country operate twining arrangements with each
other where exchange walking holidays are arranged involving joint walks, host
walks leaders and hosted accommodation.
Walks to attract new members and promote Walking
o We have a monthly slot in the County Press which provides a map and
description of a short walk. The general public are then encouraged to join us
on a given date to do this walk.
o Family walks perhaps geared around Grandparent (Ramblers), their children
and grandchildren are a means to interest younger people in walking.
o Hosting 'Walk the Wight' warm up walks give an opportunity to introduce
younger people with an interest in walking to the Ramblers.
o Organised walks and designated walking routes based around a Pub are
popular, and can link in with our walker friendly Pub initiatives.
Our Wider Charitable Mission includes
o Encouraging and supporting disadvantaged groups such as people with
visual, emotional, learning or physically impairments to get out and about in
the countryside.
o Promoting and enabling walking for shorter journeys to school, work and local
amenities.
We need to explore how we might work with employer groups, schools, social
organisations and community groups to assist in these areas.
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6. COUNTRYSIDE / OPEN SPACES
Enjoyment of our walking activities relies on the Islands beautiful landscape,
dramatic coastlines, attractive urban open spaces and pedestrian routes through and
around our towns and villages. We work in partnership with organisations such as
the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England, the National Trust, the Area of
Outstanding Natural Beauty and Nature and other Conservation groups to protect
and enhance our walking environment. Relevant activities and issues includeo Reviewing development plans with particular emphasis on their impact on
walking and footpaths (in liaison with the footpath and access team).
o Helping to formulate and using as a reference Ramblers national policy for
development and environmental issues.
o Representation on the IOW AONB Advisory Board.
o
Representation on the IOW CPRE committee.
o
Working with conservation groups to achieve compatibility between access
and conservation in the countryside.
7. PUBLICITY AND INFORMATION
We use a wide range of ways to provide information about walking, to promote the
work of the Ramblers and to achieve influence across the Island community.
1. The IOW Ramblers website, the Central Ramblers website (including Isle of
Wight dedicated pages) plus IOW Walking Face book page provide our onlie
profile.
o We need to recognise that progressively the internet is becoming the main
and in some cases the only method of communicating, providing information
and campaigning across all areas of society.
o Hence the IOW Ramblers also need to progressively adopt and develop a
range of internet tools.
2. Our WalkTalk newsletter and walks programme which are distributed to members
every four months and also Emailed to around 150 influential people and groups
around the Island.
o We are fortunate enough to benefit from the voluntary services of a
professional publication editor.
o It is important that a wide range of people contribute articles to WalkTalk. Our
editor is delighted to receive a flood of pithy opinion pieces, fascinating
stories, offbeat takes on rambling on the Island and humorous pieces.
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o We are seeking to increase sponsorship and advertising revenue in this
publication.
o A team of volunteer script checkers could be useful.
3. The monthly County Press Walk promotes both walking and the Ramblers; it also
invites potential new members on a short taster walk.
4. In partnership with Southern Vectis we are building a portfolio of 15 'Rambles by
Bus Leaflets' which are distributed at travel and information points across the
Island. It is planned to publish a new colour walking book based on these walks.
5. We need to post more Island walks on the national Ramblers Routes website.
6. At our Event Stands and through the internet we sell a range of existing
Ramblers Walks booklets and maps.
7. We have partnerships with 60 to 70 'Rambler Friendly Pubs' who display our
leaflets and welcome ramblers.
o We are considering developing walking routes and regular organised walks
based on some of these pubs.
8. We man stands at a variety of different events during the year around the Island.
These provide the opportunity to talk with potential new members and to make
contact with existing members.
o We need to review how many of these events we can handle and which ones
provide best value.
o The messages we are trying to communicate and how best to achieve this
with display material needs to be further refined.
o People manning stands need to understand these messages and be provided
with general background information about the Ramblers.
o 'Wight Scrambler' events arranged for Children and parents could be further
developed. School fetes may be suitable venues.
o Provision of weather protection (often a Marquee) is a key issue for
consideration.
9. We aim to achieve regular features about Ramblers and walking issues on local
radio and in local publications.
10. Things that we can also consider or do more of areo Presentations to community and recreational groups such as the WI, Parish
Councils, Orienteering etc.
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o Presence at younger people destinations e.g. Bestival
o Carnival Floats, Ramblers Christmas Tree
8. ORGANISATION, RESOURCES AND PRIORITIES
The wide range of activities we currently undertake and the high profile that IOW
Ramblers have achieved across the Island demonstrate the success of our
organisation.
However this is often achieved by a relatively small number of volunteers fulfilling
multiple roles and working significant amounts of time each week. In order to
maintain this level of success and to take advantage of the opportunities identified in
this paper, we need too Increase our volunteer capacity.
o Review how we are organised and how we carry out our work.
o Agree what our priorities are, and express these through specific inspirational
aims.
To pursue this, the following ideas are identified for consideration1. Volunteers often find committees and their formal roles off putting. The current
Group1 committee and the Area Council struggles to fill committee positions.
A less formal team based approach could be considered.
2. Many people are happy to make a more limited volunteering commitment, this
could be catered for by breaking tasks down into bite sized parts, while
recognising that effective coordination is then important.
3. Consider progressively establishing new teams / reinforce existing teams that
focus on the work required in each of the five areas of our activity framework.
i.e. Footpaths/Access, Walking Activities, Countryside/Open spaces,
Engaging and Supporting people, Publicity/Information.
4. Then reconfigure the Area Council as the only necessary formal committee
comprising an Area Leader, a Secretary, a Treasurer plus one or two
representatives from each of the five framework teams.
5. Group 1 currently handles three main activitieso Walks programme coordination
o Island wide social events
o Organising events stands
We need to consider a Publicity/Information team handling the organising of
event stands; Island wide social events eventually being handled by an
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Engaging and Supporting People team when it is formed; and Group 1
providing the basis of an Area Walking Activities/Groups team.
6. As each team is formed one of its first tasks would be to propose its scope of
activities, aims and priorities. Ramblers members in general and the Area
Council would have the opportunity to review and give feedback on these
prior them being firmed up. The team will then take the lead in their framework
area.
7. In place of formal minutes and reports, each team could regularly post
information about its activities on a suitable form of digital notice board.
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