While I’ve been away the government has officially responded to the Wild Camping for England and Wales petition that Darren Christie started on the 10 Downing Street website. The official response is here. Rather inevitably the response simply notes the petition and points out that that government does not have plans to allocate resources for the preparation of such legislation at this time.

It is only natural that people’s initial response should be one of disappointment but, in reality, nobody involved in the campaign should feel that way. A petition does not make for a campaign. Campaigns like this are long fought and are about building relationships and alliances. But a successful petition like this is a pretty good start. The question is where do we go next.

What the Response Really Says

Firstly, let’s note what the response says. (The full text of the government response is on the legalise wildcamping website). Some experience in ‘government speak’ is always useful here!

The response starts:

“This Government appreciates the potential benefits of wild camping in England and its attractiveness to campers who already have the opportunity to camp in the wild in Scotland.

The Land Reform Act in Scotland allows for wild camping, but the land issues and the legislation in England are somewhat different. The introduction of wild camping in England would be a controversial issue, which would require both significant consultation and legislative change.”

Paragraph 1 is a positive paragraph and is meant to be seen as such.

Paragraph 2 is simply a statement of reality. The introduction of wild camping would be controversial and it would require significant consultation before any legislative change could be imagined. No reasonable minded person could expect otherwise.

The petition ends with the simple statement that government has no plans to allocate resources for this necessary development at present. It then finishes by pointing out that legislation is currently going through Parliament to extend the current Access legislation to the coastline.

A Result!

It seems to me – as someone with a long history of political campaigning – that this is something of a result. It’s not bad at all for a first stab. The Government accepts that there are benefits here, points out that it currently has no plans to allocate resources but that it is committed to extending the rights of access and is currently doing so.

If we are serious about a real campaign then we should be encouraged by this, not disappointed. So, next steps?

Next Steps

We can learn from successful campaigns for change. Campaigns that succeed all have some notable, common, characteristics. Firstly, they have stamina and are consistent over time. Secondly, successful campaigns build relationships and alliances with not only like minded groups but with those who have more resources, more influence and – where appropriate – a greater track record of achievement.

It would be tactically wrong to simply attack the government. Without making any political points here we have to accept that this current government (whatever its shortcomings) has done more than any other in history to open up access to land in England and Wales. The campaign for access was well chronicled in my podcast interview with Lord Chris Smith (President of the Ramblers Association) on this Outdoors Station Podcast.

Secondly, we should acknowledge that this commitment runs to extending access. In the podcast interview Lord Smith talks about the campaign to extend legal access to cover the coast. That interview was recorded earlier this year and I was heartened by this. But I never imagined that this would be done so quickly as to see this being written into the new Marine Bill which was featured in the recent Queen’s Speech. For those not well acquainted with UK legislation this simply means that new legislation to enable access to coastal paths will be introduced sometime this year.

Wild Camping – The Next Steps in Access

So give the Government its due. This is a government that delivers for the outdoors world, although it is always healthy to make government believe that they haven’t done enough yet!

Our objective should be to log Wild Camping as a possible next step in the development of the rights of access in England and Wales. But how do we do that?

Building a Campaign

Firstly, any campaign has to have some structure. The public, government and others need to know who they are dealing with. What are the aims and objectives of the campaign? Who are its officers? How can people get in touch with it?

Secondly, a campaign needs to announce itself to the world in positive tones. The government’s response to the petition is an opportunity to launch something on the world. A campaign would launch itself through a positive press release to the outdoor press. It would probably not be a good idea to let TGO and the others simply feature on the negative interpretation of the response. A campaign would – in effect – welcome the government’s appreciation of benefits and take up the challenge that the petition offers!

Thirdly, a campaign should start to make itself known to the important policy influencers out there that have a track record of securing change. A newly launched, and properly constituted campaign, should make early contact with the Ramblers’ Association. For some the Ramblers are a crusty old organisation. In reality this is far from the truth; they are very effective campaigners. The Ramblers do have paid staff responsible for campaigning; they know how to work with government and get things done. We should be targeting the Ramblers as out first official ‘partners’. The British Mountaineering Council are also potential partners and have worked effectively with the Ramblers.

Fourthly, we should dig in for the long haul. Potential Partners in this enterprise will only take us seriously if they feel that we are taking the issues seriously. They will make this judgement based on the way we behave and conduct ourselves.

Are We Up For – and Up To – The Challenge?

The ball is now back in our court. I, for one, am quite happy to devote some time and energy to this cause and will do so if those effectively leading the campaign want to continue.

Developing a web presence and an internet campaign is a good idea. But we will need to meet in person to get something like this properly constituted and up and running. As much as I hate to suggest it a meeting in London would seem to be the most convenient place for us to meet. A working session could be combined with a first, informal discussion with the Ramblers’ Association. As we move on much of our work can be conducted over the web but there is no substitute for a proper working meeting if we are to take things forward.

So, I would propose:

1. The drafting of a press release that looks positively at the challenge.

2. The convening of a meeting in London.

3. An early approach to both the Ramblers and the BMC

4. (and only fourth) the preparation of some multi media content and resources.

What We Should Avoid Like the Plague!

In essence , looking like nutters. There are a lot of nutters out there. There are lot of nutters on the web.

The most important thing in moving forward is to adopt a positive and practical tone.

I’m up for this. Anyone else?

Resources

The Ramblers’ Association Campaigns
The Legalise Wild Camping Website
DEFRA – Improving Access to the English Coast (Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Parliamentary Committee on Environment, Food and Rural Affairs – Draft Marine Bill

British Mountaineering Council – Welcomes the publication of the draft Marine Bill

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