In All Our Footsteps: Tracking, Mapping and Experiencing Rights of Way in Post-War Britain

在英格兰和威尔士，大约有140，000英里的通行权，对于那些希望进入农村进行通勤和娱乐的人来说，这是必不可少的基础设施。然而，很少有人关注战后英国这一广泛网络的测绘、维护和使用历史。“在我们所有的脚步”将侧重于当地政府，民间社会，第三部门和公民活动家所追求的战略，以记录和建立第二次世界大战后英格兰和威尔士的公共道路网络-以及战后测绘工作遇到的问题。我们的重点将排除苏格兰，部分原因是地理可行性的研究，但主要是因为从来没有一个在苏格兰同等明确的努力。这一雄心勃勃的尝试记录了英格兰和威尔士的所有通行权，并在2026年1月的最后期限前成为焦点，以便根据2000年《乡村和通行权法》对所有此类道路进行法律的鉴定。漫步者目前的“不要迷失方向”运动旨在确定和正式地图尽可能多的权利之前，他们是永久失去了公众。除了作为重要的历史文物外，路权在促进身心健康活动（如步行）以及将人类与自然联系起来以获得福祉的能力方面发挥着核心作用-这是人们对心理健康和肥胖恶化的担忧中的迫切要求。我们将与漫步者，作为我们的项目合作伙伴，以及来自历史英格兰，自然英格兰，国家信托，步行从业者和学者从一系列学科的代表，询问在他们的过去和现在的背景下的重要性。通过这种方式，我们将把历史与当前的政策和实践联系起来。特别是，该项目将旨在解码和普及我们看待步行和福祉的方式，强调不同群体如何利用道路权来支持自己的健康和福祉优先事项，以及如何开发更具社会包容性的道路权网络，以鼓励有意义的参与自然，以及增加所有人的身体活动。通过与学术界内外的第三部门组织和专家合作，我们将为英格兰和威尔士当前和未来的道路权利问题提供历史见解。在我们的整个项目活动中，这些团体将塑造，并将直接进入漫步者的工作，特别是，因为他们绘制的历史权利的方式。我们将组织一系列研讨会，讨论道路权在使用、人类多样性、经济和环境变化方面面临的主要挑战。通过突出道路通行权基础设施本身，我们将鼓励利益相关者和政策制定者关注道路本身以及它们如何使各种不同的用户群体受益，并将道路通行权视为重要的历史资产以及当代资产。成果将包括学者、从业者、路径使用者和政策制定者之间更好的联系，并支持进一步深化这些联系，所有这些都得到一本开放获取编辑的书、一系列政策文件和一个数字中心的支持。

In England and Wales there are around 140,000 miles of rights of way, essential infrastructure for those wishing to access the countryside for both commuting and recreational uses. However, there has been little attention paid to histories of the mapping, maintenance and usage of this extensive network in post-war Britain. 'In All Our Footsteps' will focus on the strategies pursued by local government, civil society, the third sector and citizen-activists in order to record and establish the public ways network in England and Wales after the Second World War - as well as the problems encountered by the post-war mapping exercise at the time. Our focus will exclude Scotland partly for reasons of geographical feasibility of the study, but mainly because there has never been an equivalent definitive effort in Scotland. This ambitious attempt to record all the rights of way in England and Wales has been brought into sharp focus by the deadline of January 2026 for the legal identification of all such paths under the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. The Ramblers' current 'Don't Lose Your Way' campaign aims to identify and officially map as many rights of way as possible before they are permanently lost to the public. As well as being important historic artefacts, rights of way are central in facilitating activities for physical and mental health such as walking, and the ability to connect humans to nature for wellbeing - pressing requirements amidst concerns over mental health and worsening obesity. We will work with The Ramblers, as our Project Partner, as well as representatives from Historic England, Natural England, The National Trust, walking practitioners and academics from a range of disciplines to interrogate the importance of rights of way in their past and present context. In this way we will connect history to current policy and practice. In particular the project will aim to decode and popularise the way we see walking and wellbeing, emphasising how different groups have made and are making use of rights of way to support their own health and wellbeing priorities, and how more socially inclusive rights of way networks could be developed to encourage meaningful engagement with nature, as well as increased physical activity for all. By working with third sector organisations and experts both within and beyond academia we will provide historical insights into current and future issues relating to rights of way in England and Wales. Throughout our project activities will shaped by these groups and will feed directly into the work of The Ramblers in particular, as they map historic rights of way. We will organize a series of workshops to discuss key challenges faced by rights of way in relation to use, human diversity, economics and environmental change. By foregrounding rights of way infrastructure itself, we will encourage stakeholders and policy makers to focus attention on paths themselves and how they enable a range of diverse user groups, and to view rights of way as an important historical as well as contemporary asset in their own right. Outcomes will include better links between academics, practitioners, path users and policymakers, and support for deepening these connections further, all supported by an Open Access edited book, a series of policy documents and a digital hub.