Ramblers' Strategic Ambition for the Next Decade

"Opening the Way", a refreshed "strategic ambition" was developed by the Board and Central Office during 2023 and presented at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) on 25th November in Manchester, which I attended.

Whilst fully supporting the value in developing this, both the final proposal and the process in developing this have been rather disappointing. Although I fully appreciate that by its nature this is not something that will cover all the detailed activities, I (and many others) think that the final document could (and should) have had more details, especially on deliverability and measurability.

The EGM overwhelmingly approved the proposal (by 79 of the 99 votes cast), despite a number of reservations expressed along the lines of the following comments:

• The key aim is very clearly to be able to source more external funding, by stating some clear outcomes and impact measures
• The outcome that dominates the document and presentations is Outcome 3: Improved participation of communities that have the least access and most barriers to the outdoors. This is apparent in the stated ambitions, including Impact: "Equitable access for all communities ... to walk outdoors". Whilst I believe that this is a worthy objective, I (and others) are concerned that there appears to be almost an obsession with this, as if the sole purpose of all our activities is to support this objective. This is of some concern, as it is expected that delivering this objective will be extremely difficult and could therefore absorb much of both staff time and Ramblers' finances
• The following Outcomes are also stated, which I believe are less controversial and will be of clear benefit to us at a local level:
  • Outcome 1: Improved provision, quality and information on access, paths and rights of way
  • Outcome 2: Improved confidence and knowledge to walk outdoors
• The final stated Outcome is "Improved support for The Ramblers' charitable cause", backed-up by the enabler: "evolve our membership model to a broader supporter model, enabling us to become a charity more open to anyone who would like to support our work". The implications of the above are I believe potentially very significant. I believe that the intention is to divert resources away from supporting Areas, Groups and Members to focus on the three other Outcomes

Rebecca Dawson, Chair of the Board of Trustees, is attending our AGM, so this will be an opportunity for us to learn more about the Strategic Ambition.

Colin Sefton