Jenny Wilson and Ray Williams set off along the trail.
All Gateshead residents and visitors are now able to enjoy the native countryside thanks to an innovative scheme to offer access to all. Users of the Derwenthaugh Park and Derwent Walk who would use Shopmobility when out shopping can now access the same mobility scooters to help them see more of the Gateshead countryside.
Gateshead Council, in partnership with the Gateshead Shopmobility and the Tyne and Wear Rural Transport Partnership, has now provided two mobility scooters at the Swalwell Visitor Centre that can take users up to 4 miles into the surrounding countryside.
The scheme was launched at Saltwell Park before Christmas, and proved a hit with less mobile visitors. Twenty-five new members have signed up to be part of the scheme already and the scooters are used daily. The Derwenthaugh scheme was launched last week at Swalwell Visitor Centre, with Christine Pickersgill, chair of Gateshead Shopmobility, and Shopmobility co-ordinators Brian Kendall and Joyce Plane.
David Bunce, head of cultural services at Gateshead Council, said: “This project opens up the fantastic Gateshead countryside which is right on people’s doorsteps. The Derwent Walk follows a former railway line from Swalwell to Consett and passes by the National Trust Gibside site among many other points of interest.”
Shopmobility member Ray Williams, 63, from Winlaton, said: “This scheme is really good, and I will be using it lots this summer. It has made getting into the countryside a lot easier – I have my own power chair but this way is much better. I love to get out in the local countryside.”
The ancient woodlands of the Derwent Valley hold a wide variety of wildlife including red kits, green and great spotted woodpeckers, nuthatches, sparrowhawks, foxes badgers and deer.
For further information about the Countryside Mobility Scheme please contact Gateshead Shopmobility: 0191 477 9888 shopmobility.gateshead@dsl.pipex.com