Concern over lack of public access to the Norfolk Broads

Analysis by the Campaign for National Parks (CNP) has found that the majority of many of the national parks in England and Wales are shut off to walkers.

The CPN claimed that just 0.5pc of the land area of the Broads is accessible to the public, comprising only 150 out of 30,300 hectares.

Dr Rose O’Neill, CNP’s chief executive, said: “The Covid pandemic illustrated just how important national parks are for people’s physical health and mental wellbeing.

Dr Rose O'Neill, chief executive of the Campaign for National Parks (Image: Submitted)

“That’s why greater public access to these areas is urgently required.

“The Norfolk Broads are a special and unique landscape within the National Park family.

“We want to see a review of existing legislation so that more lowland and waterway areas, such as the Broads, are included in the definition of ‘open access land’.

“By securing these reforms we can remove the barriers facing visitors to the Norfolk Broads and ensure the public get to enjoy more of these beautiful places for generations to come.”

A spokeswoman for the Broads Authority defended the organisation’s efforts to open the area up. 

The Broads Authority has worked with Whitlingham Charitable Trust to create a new path-for-all around the Great Broad to allow for year-round access (Image: Broads Authority)

“The Broads offers over 200km of navigable waterways to explore by boat or paddle, spanning seven rivers and over 60 broads, as well as over 300km of public footpaths,” she said.  

“Due to the unique composition of the landscape, many areas are not traversable by foot or vehicle.

“The Broads is a wetland, often comprising of inaccessible reedbeds, marshland, wet fen or nature reserve.

The Broads Authority said it had worked with partners to install a new accessible bird hide and footpath at Carlton Marshes (Image: Matt Gooch/Suffolk Wildlife Trust)

“Some of this land is designated under legislation to protect the rich biodiversity of the area, or is privately-owned working arable farmland."  

She added that the authority is "working with partners and landowners to widen opportunities for walking, cycling, boating, and paddle sports" in the Broads.

“This includes footpath restoration, new signage, maps, surface improvements, new canoe portages, bird hides, creation of circular walks and accessibility improvements for wheelchair users," she said.   

The Broads Authority said that in partnership with the Environment Agency, it had undertaken bank repairs at Dunburgh on the River Waveney (Image: Broads Authority)

“We encourage people interested in access in the Broads to learn more about our Local Access Forum, where they have their say on improvements to access in the Broads area.”

The Broads are not technically a national park, but are generally regarded as having equivalent status and are considered part of the national park 'family'.