ScotWays is very pleased to be part of the Scottish Outdoor Recreation Alliance (SORA), a coalition of the main outdoor recreation organisations representing activities including walking, climbing, snow-sports touring, cycling, paddling and horse-riding as well as our own remit for outdoor access in general. SORA has produced a manifesto of proposals for the Scottish Parliament in 2026-31 to persuade prospective elected representatives of the importance of and widespread benefits from outdoor recreation. The proposed commitment, which parties are encouraged to include in their own manifestos, is an ambitious “Paths into Nature” programme 2026-31, backed by a £50m Scottish Paths Fund, to improve the quality, accessibility and visibility of our paths in outdoor spaces. 

SORA organisations clearly share many common interests but, naturally, have differing priorities so the manifesto includes aspects for each. In addition to improved resourcing of public access, of particular interest to ScotWays and its own charitable objects are updating guidance to access authorities and for NatureScot to champion access.  

We would like to see an urgent review of the guidance to access authorities on how to discharge their roles. The current guidance dates from 2005, so needs brought in line with legislation and the changing scale and nature of demand, along with the twenty years of practical experience gained. The updated guidance would then be a solid foundation for establishing what a core service looks like and the amount of funding needed to deliver the service. 

NatureScot is the government agency with responsibility for outdoor access, but its capacity to fulfil its role has been eroded. We would like to see NatureScot better enabled to reflect its role as our national access champion, and leading the way in promoting access rights and responsibilities. 

SORA’s manifesto is being sent to the political parties, and is published online here. Between them, SORA organisations are attending various party conferences to spread the word. Once you know who is standing in your constituency, we’d encourage you to contact your own candidates to find out their response to these requests. and ask what they are going to do to support outdoor access. Expect to read more about our SORA manifesto work in future editions of our e-newsletter, Stravaig, so if you’re interested in this area of our work, but are not yet signed up, then please do so. 

You can download the manifesto here.

SORA comprises Mountaineering Scotland, Ramblers Scotland, Cycling UK in Scotland, PaddleScotland, British Horse Society Scotland, ScotWays and Scottish Sports Association.