How the BMC supports access, conservation and volunteering

The British Mountaineering Council (BMC) supports access, conservation and volunteering through four connected routes: a Regional Access Database (RAD) and wild camping guidance for checking where you can go; practical conservation work such as path repair and sphagnum moss planting; volunteering and charitable trusts that organise and fund that work; and news, campaigns and events that keep members informed and involved. This is most useful if you are planning a trip in England and Wales, want to join a work party, or want to understand who maintains the paths and crags you use.

Checking access before you go

The BMC's access work starts with information you can check yourself.

• Regional Access Database (RAD) – listed under Access & Conservation > Resources. Use it to look up access arrangements and restrictions for crags and areas before travelling.
• Wild camping – covered as a separate access topic, alongside the All-Party Parliamentary Group work on access issues.
• BMC Owned Crags – land the BMC owns or manages directly, listed under Access & Conservation.

The practical sequence is: pick your area, check RAD and the relevant regional pages, then check the news feed for anything recent that affects that area. Access news is published as it changes, so a page that was accurate last season may not be now.

Conservation in practice

Conservation on the BMC site is not only policy — it is scheduled work you can join. Two examples from the current listings:

Sphagnum planting is peatland restoration: volunteers plant moss that rebuilds bog surface, which matters for carbon storage, water retention and path erosion. The Eryri item shows the other end of the same work — footpath repair on heavily used mountain routes, carried out by volunteers. Both are typical of how BMC conservation operates: a specific site, a specific task, a fixed date, and a call for helpers.

Volunteering and trusts

Volunteering appears in two forms on the site:

• Practical volunteering – the work parties above, plus ongoing volunteering listed under Access & Conservation > Volunteering.
• Trusts and Charities – the funding and governance side that supports conservation and access work.

If you want to take part, the route is the event listing for the specific task (for example the Burbage Moor planting), not a general sign-up. Dates and locations are given per event, so check the individual page rather than assuming a recurring schedule.

Campaigns, news and events

The BMC uses news and campaigns to advocate for access and conservation, and events to bring people together around it. Current examples include:

• Access & Conservation news – updates such as the Eryri path repair.
• Campaigns – advocacy on access issues, including the All-Party Parliamentary Group.
• Social walks – for example the Holme Fell Lake District Social Walk (7th October), Geology Peak District Social Walk (10th October) and Red Deer Rut Peak District Social Walk (24th October).
• Area meetings – such as the BMC Lakes Area Meeting and the BMC Cymru (Gogledd/North) Wales Meeting & AGM, where local access matters are discussed.

These are open listings rather than a single membership benefit, so you can use them to find both information and people.

What this means if you want to get involved

1. To plan a trip: check RAD and wild camping guidance for your area, then scan access news for recent changes.
2. To volunteer: go to the specific event page for the task and date you want, and check what the work involves before committing.
3. To follow access issues: use the news and campaigns sections, and consider your local area meeting.
4. To support the work financially or structurally: the Trusts and Charities pages explain the organisations behind it.

The site does not state costs, membership requirements or booking conditions for these activities on the pages summarised here, so check the individual event or resource page for those details before relying on them.