London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Jul 02, 2025

Green spaces are not accessible for 2.8m people in UK, finds study

Green spaces are not accessible for 2.8m people in UK, finds study

Fields in Trust charity finds about one in 24 people in Britain live 10 minutes walk from nearest park
Nearly 2.8 million people in the UK live more than 10 minutes walk from a public park, garden or playing field, according to research.

Fields in Trust, which protects and campaigns for public green spaces, found just four out of the 11 regions in Great Britain met its “six-acre standard” for green space provision.

Three-quarters of local authorities had adopted the charity recommendations, or equivalent guidance, in 2014. But according to research published on Wednesday, only Scotland, Wales, and the south-east and east of England met it.

Yet none of these regions were in the top five for accessibility of green space. Overall, 2,779,065 people in Britain, about one in 24 people, lived more than 10 minutes from the nearest park. The worst region for accessibility to green space was Wales, where one in 13 people lived more than 10 minutes from a park or public garden.

The findings come from Fields in Trust’s green spaces index, published every year since 2019. The charity’s guidance for outdoor sport and play, first published in the 1930s, recommends a minimum of 6 acres (2.4 hectares) of accessible green space – such as parks, public gardens, nature reserves and playing fields – per 1,000 people.

A spokesperson for the charity said it only published data for broad regions to avoid setting up a “league table” that would unfairly single out certain areas. But cross-referencing findings with those areas prioritised for the government’s levelling up agenda showed they had on average 10% less green space than the standard, the charity said.

The index exposed large disparities between regions. People in Scotland, the best-served part of Britain, had 41 sq metres of public green space per person, more than double the 19 sq metres available to Londoners.

However, even those living in regions with more green space could find those areas comparatively more inaccessible. The figures showed about one in 17 people in Scotland lived more than 10 minutes walk from their nearest green space, compared to almost as few as one in 1,000 in London.

There were no publicly available maps or datasets of green space in Northern Ireland.

The Labour MP Clive Betts, the chair of the levelling up, housing and communities scrutiny committee, described the findings as timely. “I think, particularly during the lockdown, the importance of green space and accessible green space near to people’s homes was highlighted as never before,” Betts said.

The government ought to encourage local authorities to engage with Fields in Trust, which buys up green spaces to hold them in trust for the people in perpetuity, Betts said.

“And the government probably ought to think about the issue of funding for open space in general,” he added. “We did a report as a select committee on parks and open spaces about five years ago now. I think we are going to have to revisit that as a committee at some point, because there were generally lots of good words issued after it [but] probably not a lot of progress made since.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Political Dispute Escalates Between Trump and Musk
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
US Senate Votes to Remove AI Regulation Moratorium from Domestic Policy Bill
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
Jury Deliberations in Diddy Trial Yield Partial Verdict in Serious Criminal Charges
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
King Charles Plans Significant Role for Prince Harry in Coronation
Two Chinese Nationals Arrested for Espionage Activities Against U.S. Navy
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
Trump Administration Considers Withdrawal of Funding for Hospitals Providing Gender Treatment to Minors
Texas Enacts Law Allowing Gold and Silver Transactions
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Elon Musk Critiques Senate Budget Proposal Over Job Losses and Strategic Risks
Los Angeles Riots ended with Federal Investigations into Funding
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Education Secretary Announces Overhaul of Complaints System Amid Rising Parental Grievances
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Trump Ends Trade Talks with Canada Over Digital Services Tax
UK Government Softens Welfare Reform Plans Amid Labour Party Rebellion
Labour Faces Rebellion Over Disability Benefit Reforms Ahead of Key Vote
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Host Lavish Wedding in Venice Amid Protests
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
North Korea to Open New Beach Resort to Boost Tourism Economy
UK Labour Party Faces Internal Tensions Over Welfare Reforms
Andrew Cuomo Hints at Potential November Comeback Amid Democratic Primary Results
Curtis Sliwa Champions His Vision for New York City Amid Rising Crime Concerns
Federal Reserve Proposes Changes to Capital Rule Affecting Major Banks
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Trump Escalates Criticism of Media Over Iran Strike Coverage
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
Big Four Accounting Firms Fined in Exam Cheating Scandal
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
Australia's Star Casino Secures $195 Million Rescue Package Amid Challenges
UK to Enhance Nuclear Capabilities with Acquisition of F-35A Fighter Jets
Russian Shadow Payments via Cryptocurrency Reach $9 Billion
Explosions Rock Doha as Iranian Missiles Target Qatar
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
×