THE charity that looks after the South West Coast Path has reached a fundraising milestone - as Dorset cliffs continue to crumble.
This week, the South West Coast Path Association (SWCPA), which has been fundraising as part of the Every Mile Matters campaign for around a year, announced it has raised more than £100,000 to help safeguard the future of the 630- mile National Trail.
The milestone has been hit just days after a huge landslip between Seatown and Eype beach - one of the biggest cliff collapses in the area in decades - which saw thousands of tonnes of rock and debris come crashing down.
Since the launch of the Every Mile Matters campaign, which aims to protect the path and ensure it is there for future generations to enjoy, donations have been coming in from individuals, fundraisers and local businesses all hoping to play their part in protecting the trail, which runs from Poole Harbour to Minehead, in Somerset.
After hitting the milestone, charity director Julian Gray said: “The last year has been a challenging time for everyone and our focus has been making sure the coast path is open for people to reconnect with nature and meet with friends and family safely. It’s amazing and very humbling to see what a difference people are making with their generous support, giving us the resources to get work done on the ground for this world class trail on our doorstep.”
Money raised by the campaign over the last year has helped to fund ongoing work caring for the coastal path as well as health and wellbeing projects designed to encourage people to get outside and explore the trail.
As the campaign prepares to enter its second year, the focus will shift from health and wellbeing to environment, in an attempt to improve the path’s resilience to the damaging effects of climate change.
Genevieve Hinchliff, fundraising manager for the SWCPA, said: “The pandemic has transformed the nation’s attitude towards getting active outdoors and this seems to be gradually translating into a deeper understanding of the need to care for, and crucially, fund the wild places we have all come to depend upon over the last year.”
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