Forest site review toolkit

The Sensory Trust was commissioned by the Forestry Commission to develop a site review toolkit and national training programme to help their managers respond to the new Equality Act and make their recreation sites engaging and accessible for everyone.

The priority was to create something easy to use that would dovetail with existing review processes and would help forest rangers identify priorities for improving access and enhancing the visitor experience.

We designed the toolkit to address some key questions -

How can forest recreation sites be made inviting, accessible and rewarding for everyone? If the highlight features are adrenaline-rich activities, how will people know they can also visit these places for a gentle stroll through a forest, or to enjoy a riverside picnic with their friends?

And when resources are limited, how do forest rangers work out which access improvements should take priority? And how do they make sure they understand how different people relate to and would like to use their sites?

The toolkit has been through a review process and is now complete. It was followed by a series of Sensory Trust training workshops at Alice Holt, Grizedale, Sherwood and Westonbirt to introduce site managers to the toolkit and give practical insights of how to use it. These were well received with strong attendance (all events were full) and positive feedback.

The Toolkit has now been delivered and will be rolled out by the Forestry Commission for use by the main Commission recreation sites later this year.