In this episode, we celebrate the importance of accessing green space and consider the historical actions of others and how these actions made it possible for us to enjoy the ability to ramble in the countryside.
These conversations were recorded over the Kinder Mass Trespass 90th anniversary weekend in the High Peaks of Derbyshire in Hayfield village hall.
I want to thank Joss Underwood from the Tent People, who organised a fantastic pop-up event on the village green in Hayfield and generously introduced me to today’s guests, Helen Darby, Dorothy Collins and Kate Ashbrook.
Ninety years ago, members of the young communist league gathered at Kinder Scout here in Derbyshire, to highlight the fact that walkers were denied access to areas of open country. When the group reached the plateau of Kinder Scout, there were violent scuffles with gamekeepers. As a result, six ramblers were arrested. They received jail sentences ranging from two to six months for offences relating to violence involving the keepers.
According to the Hayfield Kinder Trespass Group website, this act of civil disobedience was one of the most successful in British history. It arguably led to the passage of the National Parks legislation in 1949[8] and helped pave the way for establishing the Pennine Way and other long-distance footpaths. Walkers' rights to travel through common land and uncultivated upland were eventually protected by the Countryside and Rights of Way Act (CROW Act) of 2000.
Reference
Reach Helen Darby on Instagram @helenlouisedarby or at their website www.helendarbypoetry.com
Follow Kate Ashbrook's blog here: https://campaignerkate.wordpress.com/
Castlefield viaduct: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/castlefield-viaduct
Find out more about the Tent People: www.thetentpeople.co.uk
Hayfield Kinder Trespass Group: https://kindertrespass.org.uk/