Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to Part One of the National Disability Strategy published on 28 July 2021, what steps his Department has taken to date to improve access, signage and information on existing national paths and trails.

Establishment works have not yet started on some stretches of the England Coast Path with no legal or planning issues, in part because these had been resolved but the proposals not yet approved. However, to date Natural England has published proposals for more than 99% of the route and 69% to be either open or in the establishment phase.

We are working hard to commence establishment on the remaining stretches and to make the trail as accessible as possible. Examples of recently approved proposals that will improve accessibility include a brand-new wheelchair-friendly ramp to a popular seawall walkway in Essex, a 600m accessible boardwalk on the Wirral and significant improvements to a well-used stretch of the South West Coast Path to improve its width, surface quality and gradient.

The 47-mile Grain to Woolwich stretch opened on 12 January this year, providing high-quality access between London and the outer Thames Estuary. In urban areas, much of this stretch follows existing accessible promenades and walkways. In more rural areas, barriers to access have been reduced wherever practical, such as replacing 18 stiles with gaps or accessible gates and where possible installing signage to show step-free routes.

With regards to the work to improve access, signage and information on existing national paths and trails, National Trails are now working to formalise their commitment to a ‘one family’ approach through the establishment of a National Alliance. A new charity is being formed as a single, strategic body for all National Trails which could also help ensure consistency in signage and information. We are exploring the role that this charity could play as part of the new national landscapes partnership. This could expand our protected landscapes’ collective capacity to plan and promote events, programmes and volunteering opportunities that focus on connecting young people with nature, increasing the ethnic and socio-economic diversity of visitors, and aiding people with disabilities to enjoy our protected landscapes. We are consulting on this new approach as part of the Glover response published earlier this month, which will allow stakeholders to contribute their views.