Health and Economic Benefits
From GPG
The following examples are taken from draft and final ROWIPs - they demonstrate how authorities have described the health benefits and socio economic benefits of rights of way.
Contents |
Leicestershire County Council
See Leicestershire's chapters on " Health and socio economic factors and tourism.
Bedfordshire Draft Pilot Outdoor Access Improvement Plan
Economy and regeneration
ADAS Consulting Ltd carried out a qualitative economic benefits analysis of outdoor access as part of the pilot OAIP study during summer 2003. This involved talking to both visitors and local businesses and their full findings are detailed in appendix D.
Tourism in Bedfordshire is now recognised as being of growing importance to the local rural economy. Although the county is not thought of as a traditional tourist destination, it has a number of opportunities which include the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, historic attractions and wildlife parks that provide a destination for those on short breaks to London and parts of the south east.
In September 2003 the Ramblers' Association published the report of Mike Christie and Jon Matthews on The Economic Value of Walking in England. There is also The economic value of walking in rural Wales by Peter Midmore. These reports, based on available existing research from sources such as the Audit Commission, National Rights of Way condition survey and UK Day Visitors survey, found that over 527 million estimated walking trips were made annually in England billion with associated spending valued at over £6.14 billion. The income generated by this spending is estimated to be between £1.4 billion and £2.7 billion and supports 180,559 and 245,560 full time equivalent jobs.
They made the point that they had identified £69.2 million is needed to restore the existing English path network to an acceptable standard for public use and that a further £18.55 million will be required annually to maintain the network to this standard.
Their overall conclusion was that the total benefits from walking are greatly in excess of the costs of path restoration and maintenance. There is also significant economic value to be gained from the social benefits of walking in respect of health and environmental gains.
Tourist day visitors are the most frequent visitors to Bedfordshire with more than three quarters of the trips to towns. The most significant areas of spend are retail and catering. The most significant area of spend for day visitors to the countryside is catering.
Staying visitors account for 6% of visits but 23% of spend. Short break holiday visitors were the most significant in terms of number of trips, number of nights and spend. Visiting friends and relatives also represented a higher proportion of trips and nights stayed. Business visitors are thought to be significant and had the highest level of spend per trip and further research is needed to establish the proportion of staying visitors that are business customers. The most significant areas of spend for staying visitors are accommodation, retail and catering.
The most frequent visitors to Bedfordshire are day visitors accounting for 10.7 million trips (94% of visits). Staying visitors account for 728,000 trips (6% of visits). Day visitors account for £294m (77%) spend. Average amount spent/visit is £27. Staying visitors account for £88.4m (23%) spend. Average amount spent/visit is £121. Total spends by both staying and day visitors £382.4m. The most significant areas of spend were retail (£1 33.5m) representing 35% of spend and catering (£131.4m) representing 34% of spend.
The promotion of Bedfordshire as a destination in its own right is also gaining momentum through new branding initiatives and collaborations with the neighbouring counties of Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire.
The impact of the 2001 Foot and Mouth disease outbreak resulted in a realisation by the Government that the rural economy was having many problems. Many organisations national, regional and local are now working to develop tourism opportunities to revitalise the rural economy. It is now clearly recognised that the public rights of way network plays a key role in underpinning the rural economy.
Warwickshire County Council
See Warwickshire County Council's chapter on Health, well-being and social benefits.
Cheshire County Council
Countryside Access, Health and Wellbeing
Background
There is a strong and well-documented connection between health and access to the countryside. Firstly, the countryside provides numerous opportunities for physical activity and there is a wealth of research and information concerning the health benefits of 'moderate' exercise, such as walking, horse riding and cycling. Second, access to the countryside makes a direct, positive contribution towards mental health and emotional wellbeing.
However, people in England are more sedentary than they used to be and their health is suffering as a result. A big part of the problem is our reliance on motorised transport. A quarter of all car journeys are less than two miles in length; it is easy to see that the convenience of the private car has steadily ousted walking and cycling from their former position as our preferred transport modes for short journeys.
The Cheshire Context
Generally speaking, Cheshire residents who report their health to be poor tend to live in urban wards and those reporting their health to be good tend to live in rural wards.
However, to really target improvements for health effectively, we need to work with colleagues in the health field (e.g. Primary Care Trusts) and there are many existing projects, strategies and initiatives in Cheshire that we will be able to make connections with to deliver improvements.
What people said they wanted
We have used various sources of information to find out how people in Cheshire currently use the countryside access network for their physical and mental wellbeing, and what improvements could be made to make this easier and encourage others. We looked at: -
- Cheshire Community Survey 200311 (household interviews)
- Vale Royal Greenways Household Survey 200312 (telephone surveys)
- Health Benefits of Rights of Way 200313 (focus groups)
Key Issues
- People use the countryside to unwind where there is peace and quiet, less traffic and fresh air, to enjoy nature/landscape and to walk.
- Walking is the most popular way to visit the countryside.
- Most trips to the countryside take less than two hours.
- People would prefer to see improvements made to the network for recreational trips, as opposed to functional journeys.
- People find it hard to build exercise into their daily lives.
- There is little recognition of the benefits of moderate exercise, such as walking, whereas swimming was seen as a superior form of exercise.
- Exercising in a group is a key motivator.
- People are aware of the emotional and relaxational benefits of walking:
"My mood seems to be feeling lighter when I've been part way through the walk."
- People prefer circular routes, with minimum barriers and a walk with a 'purpose'.
- People said that maps or leaflets would encourage them to walk more, or take up walking. The types of information they would like included in leaflets comprised:
- Items of interest on the route (e.g. a lake or some ruins)
- Distance, terrain and route
- More pictures, less text
- Maps in an easy to use format
- Corresponding markers on routes to support leaflet information
What does it mean?
We drew the following conclusions from the information people gave us: -
- People in Cheshire are regularly participating in physical activity on the countryside access network. However, the fact that they rarely describe 'exercise' as their reason for doing so indicates that there is scope for education and awarenessraising of the potential health benefits of walking, cycling and horse riding. This is backed up by the findings of the Focus Groups, where there were misconceptions about the exercise value of walking and a demand for better information.
- People in Cheshire recognise the emotional and mental benefits that contact with the countryside can bring; we should build on this understanding to communicate the physical benefits too.
- The evidence suggests that the greatest take-up of physical activity on the network would occur close to where people live, and there is a particular demand for circular routes of varying length. This should be borne in mind when targeting improvements. Improving countryside access close to where people live would also ensure that the emotional and mental wellbeing benefits are accessible to a wider range of people (including those without a car).
- Innovative and creative solutions are required for targeting information and encouraging non-users.
- Evidence also suggests that people are more likely to participate in groups for the social interaction it would bring, therefore there is a role for the community.
- There is a need to work jointly with partners in the health care profession in order to find solutions that will deliver improvements for those in greatest need (e.g. hard to reach groups, people with mental health difficulties). Partners already working with these groups of people can provide insights, expertise and contacts.
- There is great potential for linking up with local initiatives which aim to increase physical activity, in order to avoid duplicating effort and to maximise resources, capitalising on existing successes.
Northumberland County Council - informal draft ROWIP
Summary of economic and health assessment
- Rights of way are an important tool to deliver on national, regional and local transport objectives to increase the use of sustainable travel for short purposeful journeys.
- Rights of way are already making an important contribution to the regional and local economy attracting visitors to the County. There is considerable potential to increase the value of walking and cycling based tourism to the rural economy through targeted investment.
- Increasing participation in cycling and walking will help meet Government targets to increase levels of physical activity to enhance the health and well-being of Northumberland residents.
- Rights of way are an important ingredient in the creation of sustainable communities and a high quality environment.
Key Strategic Objectives:
Recognise the economic, social and heritage value of the rights of way network, complemented by accessible green space and the County's extensive areas of open access.
Ensure that the benefits and opportunities of the public rights of way network are recognised by all partners and incorporated in their own proposals, plans and policies.
2.1 Northumberland's rights of way network is more than a collection of attractive routes through the County's countryside. Through effective management of rights of way, the network can help to support and deliver a range of important national, regional and local policy objectives relating to sustainable development, transport, community and health. These objectives underpin the government's commitment to build sustainable communities in urban and rural areas. A list of the key policy documents relevant to the delivery of this Rights of Way Improvement Plan can be found in Appendix II.
2.2 The contribution of Northumberland's rights of way to the local economy and as key resource to support healthy living has been recognised and quantified in a number of recent studies . For these benefits to continue to be realised it is important that the County Council ensure the network is properly maintained and managed. For the full potential of the rights of way network to be realised a continuing programme of improvements is required, which will in turn require significant additional investment. The County Council will work with a range of partners to raise the profile of the economic and social contribution of the rights of way network. It will also seek to identify additional opportunities to draw down funding to deliver specific projects, which meet a range of sustainable transport, health or economic objectives.
Economic Development
2.5 The importance of the rights of way network to Northumberland's rural economy was clearly demonstrated during the 2001 Foot and Mouth outbreak, when the majority of the County's rights of way network was closed. Visitors to the countryside, many of whom use the local rights of way network for all or part of their visit, make an important contribution to the local economy through the money they spend in local shops and businesses. A recent study, which looked at the economic value of the North East's protected landscape, assessed the impact of the nearly seven million visitors to the Northumberland Coast AONB and Northumberland National Park, as contributing £115 million per annum to the local economy.
2.6 Recent work commissioned for the Countryside Agency to evaluate the contribution of the rights of way network to the North East regional economy found that the total spend by day trippers and tourists to and within the North East associated with walking trips is estimated to be £240 million per annum. This generates an additional £57-£107 million of income and supports 7,000 to 9,600 full time or equivalent jobs. Cycling trips generate £15 million of additional expenditure, support £4-£7 million income and 400- 600 full time or equivalent jobs . Given that Northumberland accounts for around 49% of the Region's rights of way network, a sizeable proportion of this income will be generated within the County.
2.7 The Hadrian's Wall National Trail is an important flagship for promoting the attractions of walking for pleasure and it has also contributed to a heightened awareness of the overall quality of Northumberland's countryside and its natural and cultural heritage. In the 18 months since its opening in May 2003, it has been estimated that over 400,000 visitors have walked on some part of the Trail. It has been calculated that these visitors have generated £4.8m expenditure in Hadrian's Wall Country and helped support a range of new and existing small businesses .
2.8 The evidence highlights the role the County's rights of way already play in supporting sustainable integrated rural development. To maximise these benefits the Council is committed to working with tourism businesses and organisations to look at:
- Developing the potential to the rural economy of existing and proposed national and regional routes.
- Helping to develop new recreational opportunities in areas already popular with visitors for countryside recreation e.g. Northumberland Coast and Kielder
- Examining the role which rights of way can play in developing the County's existing tourism 'hubs' through partnerships with Market Town Initiatives and local tourism associations
Health
2.9 The link between lack of exercise and its contribution to poor health has been well documented. In a report by the Chief Medical Officer At Least Five Times a Week: Evidence on the Impact of Physical Activity and its Relationship to Health (2004), it was estimated that 70% of people in England do not take sufficient exercise to maintain their health. The Department Of Health and Sport England recommends that adults should undertake 30 minutes of moderate intensity exercise five times a week to reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, strokes, some cancers and obesity.
2.10 The North East has the poorest health record for diseases associated with the lack of exercise in England, and has standardised mortality rates of diseases such as strokes, cancer and cardio-vascular related illnesses ranging from 10-20% above the national average. South East Northumberland has a particularly high incident of people suffering from poor health. Recent work commissioned for the Countryside Agency to evaluate the contribution of the rights of way network to the North East regional economy found that overall cost of ill health in the North East due to lack of exercise ranges from £110 million to £410 million per year, representing 0.4% to 1.5% of regional Gross Value Added (GVA).
2.11 Walking is a particularly good form of physical activity because it can be easily incorporated into people's daily routine, is inexpensive, it requires no special skills or specialist equipment, other than the availability of safe traffic free routes.
2.12 The North East Regional Plan for Sport produced by Sport England has set a target to increase the number of people taking part in physical activity in the Region from its current rate of 28% to 50% by 2020, the equivalent of getting 34,600 new people active every year. Sport England's strategy for the Region identifies the importance of flagship walking and cycling routes and those routes, which enable walking and cycling to be incorporated into everyday lives.
2.13 Northumberland County Council is keen to work with partners such as Sport England, Primary Care Trusts and other Health Trusts to make better use of the rights of way network to encourage more people to participate in cycling and walking to maintain and enhance their health and well-being. In particular, the County Council is keen to develop and promote access to the countryside by residents who are not aware of the opportunities for and benefits of outdoor recreation and will develop its work with:
- Walking the way to Health schemes and GP Exercise referral schemes
- Green Exercise Schemes
- Greenstart- outdoor activity for pre-school children and their families working in partnership with Sure Start and
- Local schools
