Access to Open Space

Open spaces provide areas to exercise and opportunities for sport and physical activity, enable people to interact with each other and nature and to promote active lifestyles by contributing to active travel routes. 

Access to open space, however, is not evenly distributed among every community in this county. There needs to be a variety of open spaces to reflect the diverse needs of the community, based on recreational, leisure, sport and food growing needs and habitat. 

The physical and mental wellbeing benefits of accessible open space is reported by Public Health England (2020) in their Improving Access To Greenspace review, saying that greener environments are ‘associated with improved health and wellbeing outcomes such as reduced levels of depression, anxiety, and fatigue’. This can also bind communities together to reduce loneliness. 

Open spaces can also have other invaluable uses relating to the preservation of species and tackling climate change, as part of flood mitigation strategies and carbon reduction. 

Crucially, nature has been in decline across the UK as a result of a number of factors. In response to this, the wheels have already been set in motion for the creation and improvement of green space in England, with the biodiversity net gain requirements set out in national guidance. 

Among other considerations, the reviewed policy will look to address the relationship between provision of open space and extension of existing green and blue infrastructure networks as new developments are built. 

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