Green Spaces & Wellbeing
Cambridge Past, Present & Future owns and cares for over 550 acres of green spaces in and around Cambridge, which are visited over 250,000 times a year.
This includes parks, nature reserves, farmland, woodland and meadows.
Most of these are open to the public for free.
Cambridge Past, Present & Future Green Spaces & Wellbeing
Cambridge Past, Present & Future owns and cares for over 550 acres of green spaces in and around Cambridge, which are visited over 250,000 times a year.
This includes parks, nature reserves, farmland, woodland and meadows. Most of these are open to the public for free.
Our charity’s public green spaces provide a community space for people of all ages to enjoy the outdoors, experience nature and heritage and get exercise and fresh air.
During the pandemic people became aware that this was not simply a “nice to have” but essential, and in some cases lifesaving.
Please help us care for these green spaces by becoming a member, making a donation or volunteering your time.
Our public green spaces include:
Wandlebury Country Park
Wandlebury Country Park is 150 acres of woodland, meadows, orchard and ponds.
Coton Countryside Reserve
Coton Countryside Reserve is 350 acres of farmland and new habitats.
Grantchester
Meadows
Grantchester Meadows is 50 acres of meadows running next to the River Cam.
Our private green spaces include:
Comberton Woods
Comberton Woods is 10 acres of private woodland near Long Road.
Balsham Wood & Farm
37 acres of private farmland and a young woodland near Balsham.
Wandlebury Country Park
Wandlebury Country Park is 150 acres of woodland, meadows, orchard and ponds.
Coton Countryside Reserve
Coton Countryside Reserve is 350 acres of farmland and new habitats.
Grantchester Meadows
Grantchester Meadows is 50 acres of meadows running next to the River Cam.
Barnwell Meadows
Barnwell Meadows is 4 acres of meadows in Cambridge, including part of the Chisholm Trail.
Our private green spaces include:
Comberton
Woods
Comberton Woods is 10 acres of private woodland near Long Road.
Balsham Wood & Farm
37 acres of private farmland and a young woodland near Balsham.
Cambridge Needs more Green Space
Our charity’s public green spaces provide a community space for people of all ages to enjoy the outdoors, experience nature and heritage and get exercise and fresh air. During the pandemic people became aware that this was not simply a “nice to have” but essential, and in some cases lifesaving.
“Over 40 years of research shows that experiences of nature are linked to a remarkable breadth of positive health outcomes…including improved physical health, improved mental wellbeing, greater social wellbeing, and positive health behaviours” (Shanahan et al, Nature Journal, 6, (2016)).
The facilities we provide at some of our green spaces include parking, paths, toilets, information, seats, picnic areas, informal play and other informal visitor facilities for community use. We also provide a Countryside Warden service and volunteers to assist visitors and ensure that facilities are clean and safe.
The population of the wider Cambridge area is planned to grow by 30% in the next 20-years, at the same time as nature is in significant decline. In order to respond, we know that we will need to increase the amount of green space available for nature and people. We are doing this through our ongoing work and individual projects on our own land, as well as working in partnership with other like-minded organisations and also by advocating for changes in policy and funding.
We organise a wide range of events and activities that contribute to the health and well-being of local communities. This includes our successful Healthy Walk programme at Wandlebury and we are grateful to the volunteers that run this scheme. Click here to find out about our Healthy Walks.
We organise green gym activities that enable volunteers to get physically and socially active whilst helping to improve habitats and care for our heritage.
We often work in partnership with health service providers who use our green spaces to benefit the well-being of their patients and clients. Wandlebury is visited weekly by social care groups, such a Larkfield Adult Day Centre in Ely:
“We bring our clients to Wandlebury 3 or 4 times a year. It’s a lovely place to bring them; there’s shade from the trees in summer and places to have a picnic. It’s so tranquil, it’s a little spot of wilderness.”
Larkfield Adult Day Centre in Ely
With the resources available to us, we do what we can to enable and encourage access for all.
At Wandlebury visitors with disabilities can park for free and we have an all-terrain mobility scooter available for free hire. At Coton Countryside Reserve we have built a concrete path – download a map of the walking trails and Barnwell Meadows can be enjoyed by using the Chisholm Trail.