Ten years of outdoor fun and encouragement. Utterly fab

Ten years ago today my good friend Lucy and I were excitedly heading towards a studio in London to meet 15 other newly selected Ordnance Survey Get Outside Champions. and find out more about the groundbreaking initiative we had just joined. We had an amazing day, met some wonderful people, some of whom are still friends today, and learned a lot about speaking to the camera. We also got to meet naturalist Steve Backshall and adventurer Sean Conway.

The Get Outside campaign

Following news that British people were walking far less than they used to, Ordnance Survey’s Get Outside campaign was started to get the message across about the benefits of exercise and fresh air. By gathering together 15 outdoorsy individuals, couples and groups, and equipping them with the latest mapping technology (in the form of the newly launched OS Maps app), Ordnance Survey were hoping to inspire and encourage more people to discover and rediscover the joy of an outdoor lifestyle.

And the campaign has been doing just that every since.

Ten years of outdoor encouragement

Although Get Outside Champions were officially renamed Ordnance Survey Champions in 2024, the campaign continues. From just fifteen, the number of OS Champions has grown over the last ten years and there are now around a hundred Champions from all walks of life and all over the UK. We are all still doing our best to encourage people to get outside more.

And we are succeeding.

To be fair, there are lots of other great outdoor and activity advocates out there and well as thousands of grass roots coaches, instructors and leaders but I’m happy to share the credit with everyone because the news is good.

Together we are making a difference.

Sport England’s Active Lives survey data (2024) show that, in England at least, there are a whopping two million more adults getting regular activity through sport and physical exercise than there were in 2016. And that’s despite a global pandemic and the current cost of living crisis.

There’s plenty more work to do.

Although two thirds of adults in England now have an active lifestyle, many are still inactive. And participation in exercise isn’t evenly spread across the population; our age, ethnicity, socio-economic status and gender all play a part. For example, activity levels have sadly started to fall in the most deprived areas of the country.

Celebrating the Get Outside achievements

I would be here a long time if I listed all of the fantastic initiatives the Get Outside and Ordnance Survey campaign has organised and taken part in over the last ten year. Not to mention the sterling efforts of individual OS Champions in their own areas and fields of expertise. But below are a few happenings I have been personally involved in. They include some of my proudest moments.

National Get Outside Day

With the aim to encourage people who don’t usually get outside to try an outdoor activity, Ordnance Survey’s first official National Get Outside Day was held in September 2018. It was a great success with over one million people taking part. National Get Outside Day has continued to be celebrated ever since.

Street2Peak

Dwayne Fields (now the Chief Scout) knows first hand the power of the outdoors to turn around young lives. His Street2Peak initiative, supported by Ordnance Survey and OS Champions, took a group of young people from an urban inner city area and gave them the opportunity to climb the UK’s highest mountain, Ben Nevis. Training started in Epping Forest.

Britain’s Favourite Walks

Britain’s Favourite Walks: Top 100 remains popular since its filming in 2018. With walk ideas from all across Britain, and corresponding maps on the OS Maps app, it has encouraged many people to discover new walking routes. Lucy and I were very proud to introduce the world to Bowerman’s Nose on Dartmoor in our first (but not only) TV appearance.

National Map Reading Week

With its workshops and online map reading guides, National Map Reading Week started in 2016 and aims each year to encourage more people to learn new map reading and navigation skills. Learning to find your way using a map and compass isn’t just about staying safe when you’re outside. It also opens up a whole world of outdoor opportunity and a wide range of experiences.

My own Get Outside Champion journey

Over the last ten years, I’ve worked hard at being an Ordnance Survey Champion and the effort has paid off. The scheme has opened up so many doors for me and given me so many opportunities to encourage other people to find solace, health and happiness in the outdoors. My role has led to a career as a successful outdoor writer, my own blog (with a speciality in adventures by train) and a lifestyle that keeps me on my toes. I will always be grateful for the opportunity.

So what next?

Competition for a place as an Ordnance Survey Champion remains as strong as it was when the scheme first started. With another round of selection looming in 2027, who knows whether or not I’ll continue into my second decade with Ordnance Survey. My knees don’t work as well as they did ten years ago and I now prefer shorter walks to mountain hikes. I still love outdoor swimming, wild camping and supporting young people on their Duke of Edinburgh’s Award expeditions but at the grand age of 58, I can now add to my outdoor portfolio the more sedate outside interests of train station walks and growing my own food. Something for everyone there perhaps but I do sometimes wonder if it’s going to be ‘zingy’ enough for today’s social media.

We shall see.

But one thing’s for sure.

Being a Get Outside Champion has been an honour and an absolute blast!

Thanks team!