The Access Network Map of England
is a national composite dataset of Access layers, showing analysis of extent of
Access provision for each Lower Super Output Area (LSOA), as a percentage or
area coverage of access in England. The ‘Access Network Map’ was developed by
Natural England to inform its work to improve opportunities for people to enjoy
the natural environment. This map shows, across England, the
relative abundance of accessible land in relation to where people
live. Due to issues explained below, the map does not, and cannot, provide
a definitive statement of where intervention is necessary. Rather,
it should be used to identify areas of interest which require further
exploration. Natural England believes that places where
people can enjoy the natural environment should be improved and created where
they are most wanted. Access Network Maps help support this work by
providing means to assess the amount of accessible land available in relation
to where people live. They combine all the available good quality data on
access provision into a single dataset and relate this to population.
This provides a common foundation for regional and national teams to use when
targeting resources to improve public access to greenspace, or projects that
rely on this resource. The Access Network Maps are compiled from the
datasets available to Natural England which contain robust, nationally
consistent data on land and routes that are normally available to the public
and are free of charge. Datasets contained in the aggregated
data:•
Agri-environment
scheme permissive access (routes and open access)•
CROW access land
(including registered common land and Section 16)•
Country Parks•
Cycleways (Sustrans
Routes) including Local/Regional/National and Link Routes•
Doorstep Greens•
Local Nature
Reserves•
Millennium Greens•
National Nature
Reserves (accessible sites only)•
National Trails•
Public Rights of
Way•
Forestry Commission
‘Woods for People’ data•
Village Greens –
point data only Due to the quantity and complexity of data
used, it is not possible to display clearly on a single map the precise
boundary of accessible land for all areas. We therefore selected a
unit which would be clearly visible at a variety of scales and calculated the
total area (in hectares) of accessible land in each. The units we
selected are ‘Lower Super Output Areas’ (LSOAs), which represent where
approximately 1,500 people live based on postcode. To calculate the
total area of accessible land for each we gave the linear routes a notional
width of 3 metres so they could be measured in hectares. We then
combined together all the datasets and calculated the total hectares of
accessible land in each LSOA. For further information about this data see the following links:Access Network Mapping GuidanceAccess Network Mapping Metadata Full metadata can be viewed on data.gov.uk.