About us

The Friends of The Ridgeway is a registered charity (No 1107926). Its objects, as set out in its Constitution, modified in 2008, are "the preservation, for the benefit of the public and in the interests of social welfare, of all the natural aspects and features of the ancient Ridgeway track-ways along the chalk downs of Southern England, including The Ridgeway National Trail and any extension thereof, and of their associated features, monuments and access paths; and the provision of recreational and educational facilities and events relating thereto." 

We are a voluntary organisation with the over-arching aim of preserving the spirit of The Ridgeway path (see Objectives). The Ridgeway National Trail, between Overton Hill in Wiltshire and Ivinghoe Beacon in Buckinghamshire, forms the central section of the the ancient Ridgeway system of braided tracks and greenways, which runs across the country between the Dorset coast and East Anglia, and links many of our finest Iron Age hill-forts, and pre-historic barrows and monuments.  

From our inception in 1982 we have campaigned to preserve and maintain the special nature of The Ridgeway, to combat the destructive and intrusive use of The Ridgeway Trail by non-essential motor vehicles and to remove them from The Ridgeway. 

Following passage of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act, 2006, restrictions have been imposed on such use by the authorities concerned, covering much of the Trail.  This has enabled us to focus more on raising public awareness of The Ridgeway, and encouraging more people to visit its historic sites, to appreciate its flora and fauna and to quietly enjoy the wonderfully varied scenery along the 85 mile length of the National Trail, and the much greater extent of its associated paths. 

We have also been able to widen our focus beyond the National Trail, to consider other sections of the ancient Ridgeway system, and, as a first step, we have proposed a southwards extension of the Ridgeway path from the present end at Overton Hill across Salisbury Plain to Stonehenge and onwards to Old Sarum near Salisbury; and we have called this “The Great Stones Way”.   A feasibility study for this project has recently been commissioned; click here for details.

We value the contribution which walking or riding (under one’s own power!) along The Ridgeway can make to both one’s personal fitness and well-being, the reduction in one’s waist-band, and the capacity of one’s lungs.  We also value the fact that on The Ridgeway one can enjoy the finest countryside in Southern Britain, and visit some of the jewels of our ancient heritage, while adding nothing at all to one’s carbon footprint.

We share your concerns for your environment, and for preserving its peace and beauty from noise, from physical damage and from inappropriate development.  We value as you do our heritage of ancient roads and tracks, and green ways and spaces.  Please let us know if they are in danger and we shall join you in trying to protect them.

We work closely with the National Trails Office and its staff who undertake responsibility for maintenance of The Ridgeway. Many of our members help to monitor the condition of the Trail, and some participate in the Ridgeway Volunteers scheme, giving their time to carry out maintenance work on the Trail and repairs to gates, stiles and signposts.  We monitor planning applications and try to resist inappropriate developments near or in sight of the Trail, and we campaign to make The Ridgeway more accessible for blind and disabled users. We lobby for better public transport connections to The Ridgeway and are trying for that reason to extend the official start point of the western end of the Trail to Pewsey complementing the recent establishment of the Ridgeway Link path from Ivinghoe Beacon at the northern end of the Trail to the Chilterns Gateway Centre near Dunstable.   In the longer term, we plan to promote the extension of the National Trail to cover the whole length of the Great Ridgeway.

The Association is run by an Executive Committee (see details), which meets regularly.  We have over 500 members and we publish a Newsletter four times a year.  Our Annual General Meeting is held (usually in March or April) at a venue close to The Ridgeway and is addressed by a prominent speaker.  We try to achieve our aims by organising events along and near the Trail and its many archaeological and historic sites, of interest to our members and the public at large.   We sell a small number of promotional items to raise funds for our society, including notelets and Christmas cards. (Click here for the order form for greetings cards.)

View: Newsletters and the 2009 AGM Minutes.
Report and Accounts available on request.