Participants experience a disproportionate number of barriers that make it significantly harder for them to access parks and green spaces than other groups. The key findings revealed some recurring issues:

• Getting in and around parks: navigating pavements without enough drop curbs. Gates to navigate. Pathways that are slippery, uneven, muddy or narrow. Steps rather than slopes. A lack of seating.
• Park facilities: Play equipment not designed for visually impaired, wheelchair users and not suitable for adults with learning difficulties. Lack of cafes, toilets, and accessible toilets.
• Safety and social issues: Poor hygiene practices of dog owners. Litter. Dogs running free. Criticism from other park users.
• Mental load: intensive and laborious planning due to a lack of information available about the facilities available, accessibility and current state of parks.

We want to ensure this group can access safe, inclusive, and welcoming parks. We are determined to use the findings to deliver significant improvements in our local parks and we are calling on local organisations, individuals and community groups to work in partnership with us on a series of actions over the next three years:

1. To create the first community-led park access assessments. These will look at the accessibility of parks as a whole and create an action plan that can be taken forward by the community. A toolkit will be designed that can be used for any green space in the UK.
2. To run a programme of activities designed in partnership with disabled people and unpaid carers – such as sensory tours, supported play sessions, accessible nature volunteering and accessible sports.
3. To support Bristol and Bath’s 120 parks groups to help them improve their parks and make activities more inclusive.

Find out more about Parks4All now.