Scottish Natural Heritage Ranger Services in – The Achievements ‘at a glance’ 2010/11 Ranger Services in Scotland – The Achievements ‘at a glance’ 2010/11

Scotland’s Rangers Services are an important asset, providing real and tangible benefits for the people and . This ‘at a glance’ summary shows the achievements in 2010/11 of the Ranger Services supported by grant aid from SNH or the National Park Authority, as well as a number of other Ranger Services.

Background In 2008, SNH refreshed its approach Park Authority, Forestry Commission to Rangers in Scotland. Building on Scotland and Historic Scotland. As our 1997 Ranger policy, we worked part of our commitment to delivering with a range of partners to prepare this statement, SNH agreed to collate a new statement to provide the and publish information on the work framework within which all Ranger of Ranger Services across Scotland Services could be developed and and the contribution they make to managed effectively to meet local Government priorities. needs within the framework of national This is the second report to be priorities established by the Scottish published on Ranger Services’ Government. achievements. The first report covered The statement was endorsed by 2009/10. the Convention of Scottish Local The Rangers in Scotland Policy Authorities, the Scottish Countryside identifies three key Ranger aims to Rangers’ Association, Lomond describe the breadth of work that and the National Park Rangers are involved in. Authority, the Cairngorms National 2 www.snh.gov.uk Ranger Aims Government priorities To ensure a warm welcome and supporting sustainable economic provide support to help people enjoy development by maintaining, the outdoors managing and promoting infrastructure for tourism;

To increase awareness, increasing health and well- understanding, care and responsible being through facilitating access use of the natural and cultural heritage to and promoting enjoyment and understanding of the outdoors; encouraging people to be active To support the sustainable citizens by helping to build stronger management and use of the outdoors and safer communities and providing to meet a range of social, economic opportunities for volunteering, locally and environmental objectives or further afield; tackling social inclusion by working with less advantaged groups and communities; and enhancing the natural and historic environment for future generations, including designated sites and greenspace close to where people live.

Ranger Services in Scotland 3 All Ranger Services were asked to Many Ranger Services did not provide capture information about selected returns and while the presented aspects of their work against these information is impressive in itself, the three aims for the period April 2010 data significantly under-represents the and March 2011. 34 returns from a overall contribution that Scotland’s possible 63 Ranger Services were Ranger Services deliver for people and received, including a small number of . local authorities (whom we particularly A similar exercise will be repeated for thank for their contribution). the period April 2011 to March 2012, The Ranger Services contributing for SNH and Cairngorms National Park to this 2010/11 report are listed in Authority supported Ranger Services Annex 1. They represent just over 190 only. The next analysis to cover all Ranger posts (just over 160 full time Ranger Services in Scotland will be equivalents) and cover nearly 700,000 requested for April 2013 to March hectares (nearly 10% of Scotland). 2014 which we hope will include Overall they are a good sample of the data from a larger number of Ranger current diversity of provision within Services. Scotland – varying in size and type For further information please contact of Service and its setting – urban, Alison Matheson, rural, upland, lowland, mainland, Scottish Natural Heritage, island, coastal and inland. The sample Great Glen House, is, however, different from that of Leachkin Road, 2009/10, with contributions from Inverness, IV3 8NW Services of different size and operating Tel (DD) 01463 725209 in different settings. For this reason, [email protected] direct comparisons with the figures in the 2009/10 report should not be made.

4 www.snh.gov.uk The Achievements of Ranger Services

Ranger Aim 1 Games, agricultural and community shows; getting in touch with General To ensure a warm welcome Practitioners to let them know about and provide support to help ranger-led health walks; visiting local people enjoy the outdoors equality groups; and meeting and greeting visitors arriving in the area, for Over 4 million visits were made to example on the ferry. the places and facilities managed, and benefitting from the information Ranger Services have been working provided, by Ranger Services. The particularly hard to encourage more severe early winter weather of 10/11 people from different backgrounds to required an extra special effort by enjoy the outdoors. Examples of groups Ranger Services to keep access open targeted include, the very young, elderly to enable visits to the outdoors to people, local community groups, children continue. with behavioural difficulties, people from disadvantaged backgrounds, people Ranger Services used nearly 2000 with disabilities, black and ethnic minority ways to promote the outdoors. groups, and offenders. Ranger Services used a range of different approaches in raising Ranger Services have been arranging awareness of outdoor opportunities in events which are accessible by the local area, including: advertising all people regardless of ability in Tourist Information Centres, local and background, for example by: hotels, shops and waiting rooms; and running guided walks for a range using websites, tourist brochures, of abilities; arranging transport for television, radio and the press. Ranger people with limited mobility; and Services also used the personal touch, actively encouraging people from all for example by: attending backgrounds to come along to events.

Ranger Services in Scotland 5 Ranger Services have been helping a wide range of people to develop new outdoor skills. For example: Aberdeen City and Angus Council Ranger Services worked with offenders from local prisons to support them to achieve the John Muir Award, starting in prison and continuing in the community after release. This helped the prisoners to develop skills, and build a sense of achievement and self worth, as well as helping to reduce the rates of re-offending. Balmoral Estate Ranger Service offered a weekly work experience placement to a young person who had been excluded from school for disruptive behaviour. This involved working with the Ranger Service one day a week, mainly on habitat management, and helped the young person to complete their time at school. The placement also helped the young person to develop an interest in working towards a career in farming. The Heart of Neolithic World Heritage Site Ranger Service provided a course for young people who were undecided on, or not ready for, a specific vocational course or employment. This aided their personal and vocational development. Working with Voluntary Action Orkney they also delivered a course on studying the natural and cultural environment for young people aged between 16-19, who were unsure of their next steps towards employment or further training. Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority Ranger Service hosted eight Future Jobs Funds placements for local 18-25 year old long- term unemployed people. This provided them with an opportunity to gain work related skills and skills specific to Rangering.

6 www.snh.gov.uk Foula Ranger Service encouraged people who are unable to walk very far (the frail, elderly and families with very young children) to enjoy the outdoors by offering a series of guided drives with short walks, which led to viewpoints where they could sit and enjoy the scenery. The Ranger Service found that less confident walkers were reassured by knowing there was somewhere they could sit down on a walk, and this encouraged them out of the car and onto a walk. The Foundation Ranger Service ran a tour for a group with learning disabilities who like to be part of a small team spending time away together. They had refreshments at one of Scotland’s most remote and inaccessible restaurants, enjoyed a low-level hillwalk and visited a scenic waterfall. Glen Tanar Ranger Service led health walks with the Cairngorms Outdoor Access Trust to help people with health issues improve their health and confidence by exploring the outdoors.

Ranger Services in Scotland 7 Ranger Aim 2 Volunteering – Over 5,000 people To increase awareness, were involved in volunteering with Ranger Services, and this amounted understanding, care and to nearly 17,000 volunteer days. The responsible use of the natural tasks carried out were wide ranging and cultural heritage and included path maintenance and monitoring, habitat and species Public events – Over 85,000 people surveying, tree planting, non-native attended Ranger led events. These invasive species removal, litter covered a vast range of topics and clearance, welcoming visitors to visitor interests such as a dark skies night, centres, helping to lead guided walks a top dogs day out, archaeology for and educational activities. young people, a fungal foray, wild food foraging, wildlife watching, and wildlife crime awareness. Education – Over 60,000 young people and adults in education benefitted from working with a Ranger on curricular / study related projects. Some examples are: helping with eco-schools, species identification, landscape awareness, land-use studies, mini-beasts, species identification, marine life, habitat surveying, farming and local food, endangered species, and pollution.

8 www.snh.gov.uk Hoddom and Kinmount Ranger Service organised practical conservation work for volunteers from a residential centre in Lockerbie for adults with learning difficulties, acquired brain injuries or mental health problems as well as those on the autistic spectrum. The staff and residents completed various tasks including path maintenance, scrub clearance, tree planting and pond creation. As well as enhancing their understanding of the natural world, the initiative was a valuable opportunity to help overcome social isolation among people with disabilities and make a positive contribution to their local community. Moreover, the volunteers developed a strong group identity, and involvement in the project had a positive impact on their lives in terms of psychological well-being and physical health. Knoydart Foundation Ranger Service ran twice-yearly beach cleans, with the help of volunteers from the John Muir Trust, Friends of Knoydart, the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers and the army (with two helicopters!). Removing rubbish from the beaches in Knoydart can be a logistical challenge, to say the least. Sanday Ranger Service worked with volunteers to Bag-the-Bruck, and removed vast amounts of dangerous and unsightly litter from the coastline. Volunteers with Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park Ranger Service have been growing juniper and spignel (a scarce plant found in unimproved grassland) in Lochwinnoch Community Garden and in a polytunnel. So far 70 juniper plants have been planted out along with same amount of aspen and eared willow at a 17 hectare moorland site and at Muirshiel Country Park with support from funders and the local landowner. Two local high schools are now propagating these species and working with the Ranger Service at their sites and in the Community Garden.

Ranger Services in Scotland 9 Ranger Aim 3 Ranger Services have an important role in contributing to biodiversity To support the sustainable conservation through their work on management and use of the habitats and species. They contributed outdoors to meet a range to the monitoring and management of social, economic and of 12 UK Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) Priority Habitats and also environmental objectives made a significant contribution to the Rangers have extensive knowledge, conservation of 18 Priority Species and and wide-ranging skills in promoting 47 local habitat and species action the enjoyment, understanding and care plans. A number of the species are of Scotland’s outdoors. These are put also on the Scottish Biodiversity list. to good use, adding significant value, Work carried out ranged from mink through the partnerships, projects monitoring and trapping for water vole and initiatives that Rangers contribute conservation, bat monitoring, woodland to. Ranger Services supported over management to support invertebrates, 300 of these, and they included woodland monitoring, and invasive Local Access Forums, Core Path species removal. In addition to Planning, Community Councils and these practical tasks, a variety of other community groups, Business interpretation and education work was Partnerships, Tourism organisations, also carried out to raise awareness of Development Trusts, Eco-schools, many of the habitats and species. Partnership Against Wildlife Crime, Environmental Organisations, Government Organisations, Landscape Partnerships, Biodiversity Partnerships, and youth groups.

10 www.snh.gov.uk Explore Abernethy Ranger Service worked closely with the Nethy Bridge Tourist Association which aims to encourage tourists to the area, and to ensure that they have a good experience when they get there. The Ranger Service added value to the work of the Association by giving advice about which opportunities in the outdoors to promote, and helping to ensure that the promoted paths were well maintained. They also provided a welcome in the visitor centre and a range of events and activities all designed to make a more memorable stay. Dundee City Council Countryside Ranger Service held a Bio Blitz Event at Trottick Ponds Local Nature Reserve. The event was held over 24 hours with the aim of recording as many different species of plants and animals as possible. Support came from a partnership of public and community organisations including Tayside Biodiversity Partnership, Hillcrest Housing Association, BBC Breathing Places, Dundee Museum Services, Dundee Naturalists Society, Bug life Scotland and colleagues from Fife Ranger Service. Field experts started on Saturday evening recording bats and moths. On Sunday over fifty local people joined in the activities with sweep netting, branch shaking and pond dipping all adding to records for the site. A total of 230 species were recorded. As well as promoting community participation in nature conservation this information will help guide future site management.

Ranger Services in Scotland 11 Annex 1 Ranger Services Contributing To This Report

Aberdeen City Council Ranger Service Angus Council Ranger Service Atholl Estate Ranger Service Balmoral Estate Ranger Service* Brahan Ranger Service Buccleuch Ranger Service – Bowhill Buccleuch Ranger Service – Dalkeith Buccleuch Ranger Service – Drumlanrig Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park Dundee City Council Ranger Service Eday Ranger Service Explore Abernethy Ranger Service* Fair Isle Ranger Service Finlaystone Ranger Service Foula Ranger Service Galson Ranger Service Glenlivet Estate Ranger Service*

12 www.snh.gov.uk Glen Tanar Ranger Service* Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site Ranger Service Hopetoun House Ranger Service Hoddom and Kinmount Ranger Service Kelburn Estate Ranger Service Knoydart Ranger Service Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority Ranger Service Mount Stuart Isle of Bute Ranger Service Mull and Iona Ranger Service North Harris Ranger Service The Highland Council Ranger Service (Badenoch and Strathspey)* The National Trust for Scotland Ranger Service Rothiemurchus Ranger Service* Rum Ranger Service Sanday Ranger Service, Orkney Scapa Flow Landscape Partnership Scheme Ranger South Isles Ranger Service, Orkney

* report provided to Cairngorms National Park Authority

Ranger Services in Scotland 13 Looking after all of Scotland’s nature and Using targeted and proportionate Action, landscapes, across all of Scotland, for everyone Promotion and Advice, our aims are: – High quality nature and landscapes that are resilient to change and deliver Delivering a national service, locally public value – Nature and landscapes that make Our work supports the Scottish Government’s Purpose: Scotland a better place in which to live, work and visit to focus government and public services on creating – More people experiencing, enjoying and a more successful country, with opportunities for all valuing our nature and landscapes of Scotland to flourish, through increasing sustainable – Nature and landscapes as assets contributing more to the Scottish economic growth economy Our actions involve: – Securing the management of www.snh.gov.uk Scotland’s natural assets to deliver © Scottish Natural Heritage 2012 the National Outcomes in the Scottish ISBN: 978-1-85397-833-3 Government’s National Performance Framework. Print Code: JTCP0.1k0312 – Assembling and presenting evidence All images © Lorne Gill/SNH except: G.Logan/SNH p4, and interpretation to shape the way that S.Scott/SNH p7, J.MacPherson/SNH p10 natural assets support investment and Design: Kenneth Gray, Edinburgh secure public benefits. Our success depends on working with others including national and local government, national park authorities, other public bodies, land managers, businesses, voluntary organisations, community groups and individuals. We welcome diversity and value building on the differences individuals bring.