East Cheshire Ramblers

Monday 26 Jan 26 Committee Meeting 26th January 2026

Meeting at 13:00

Location

Agenda

EAST CHESHIRE RAMBLERS COMMITTEE MEETING 26th January 2026 at 1.00pm Macclesfield Tennis Club, Learning Zone Campus Park Lane Macclesfield SK11 8LF    Meeting called by Maggie Swindells

Attendees	Maggie Swindells	Chair Chair
	Margaret Kemble	Treasurer
	Steve Hull	Secretary
	Anne Ball	Membership Secretary
	Jennefer Mellor	Social Media Secretary
	Louise Whitaker	Footpath Secretary
	Gina Thompson	Social Secretary
	Jeremy Barnett	Committee Member
	Melanie Davy	Committee Member
	Richard Higham	Committee Member
	Terry Pritchard	Committee Member

1.	Apologies and welcome
2.	Minutes of Last Meeting
3.	Matters Arising from the last meeting
4.	Walk Programme
5.	Reports from Officers
5.1	Chair
5.2	Treasurers Report
5.3	Footpath Secretary Report
5.4	Membership Secretary Report
5.5	Social Secretary Report
5.6	Lost Ways Report
5.7	Social Media Report
6.	Footpath Maintenance
6.1	Recruitment of New Team Leader
6.2	Storage and/or Disposal of Equipment Currently Held by Brian Richardson
7.	Website
8.	Email and Security
9.	2026 Christmas arrangements review
10.	AOB
11.	Meeting Dates 26th January, 13th April, 13th July 21st September 2026 AGM 28th November

Reports

Contents
Report 1 Chair 2
Report 2 Treasurer 7
Report 3 Footpath Secretary 8
Report 4 Membership 10
Report 5 Social Secretary 16
Report 7 Social Media 18
Walk Numbers for 2025 22

Report 1 Chair
prepared by Maggie Swindells

Happy New Year to you all and a very warm welcome to Jeremy and Richard.

UPDATE FROM RAMBLERS CENTRAL OFFICE

The key messages from the 6th December conference are summarised below:

Trustee Elections Process

The idea of England-only elected trustees was debated and received some support, but many members were in favour of “four GB-wide elected trustee roles, alongside the Scotland and Wales elected trustee roles”, on the basis that this would provide the widest choice of candidates and better reflect Ramblers' inclusive values.

Regional representation within England was seen as impractical by most, but members supported a commitment to geographic diversity in communications about the elections.
The election process was generally seen as sensible, with an emphasis placed on clear communication to ensure transparency (for example, written statements plus video introductions for candidates and online Q&A sessions).

Quotes from the workshops
• “Need to spread awareness of trustee role and what’s involved.”
• “Strongest argument against restricting candidates by region: might miss out on exceptional candidates with required skills.”
• “Applications should be welcoming for first-time applicants – very clear guidance and support.”
• “Voting results must be communicated beyond the meeting to ensure members see feedback.”
• “Candidate statements should explain what Ramblers’ charitable objects mean to them and why.”
Gatherings and Debates
• There was support for the concept of gatherings with flexibility for regional/national variation, independent chairs, and member-led agendas.
• The term ‘forum’, ‘assembly’ or ‘conference’ over ‘gathering’ was favoured by many.  In the final plenary session, there was a consensus in favour of “forum”.
• The idea of planning teams to agree agendas was welcomed with a variety of views on how these teams should be formed.
• There was some support for members having the biggest say in setting the agenda.  The idea of a 40-40-20 split (member topics, board topics, external speakers) was suggested.
• The importance of clear processes for collating and prioritising themes from regional forums was stressed, and the idea of more frequent national forums was suggested.
• It was agreed that trustees should attend, and outcomes should be reviewed by trustees and responded to promptly via varied channels.
• Members suggested that forums should be used for a variety of purposes, including training, networking, and celebrating success.
Quotes from the workshops
• “Seek questions in advance; time limits on speaking; plenary and group sessions.”
• “Board response expected within 3 months of the forums.”
• “Publish full reports but also executive summaries – iterative process.”
• “Concern: How outcomes are fed up to the Board?”
• “Without the gathering feeding into the Board, influence is impossible.”
• “Feedback needs to be timely to keep members engaged and promote attendance.”
• “Record reasons for decisions and publish promptly after meetings.”

Timeline and Next Steps
The conference agenda did not include debate on the detail of the proposals for Scotland and Wales. Separate sessions to discuss these arrangements will be held in February.
In parallel, the staff team and trustees will refine the proposals in the light of the discussions at the conference and then the feedback from the meetings in Wales and Scotland.
Ramblers CO will share the updated proposals, along with drafts of the Articles of Association and Standing Orders, with members before the AGM papers are finalised, and ensure there is an opportunity to discuss and, if necessary, amend these.
The intention is that the final proposals will be presented to the General Council for decision at the AGM on 25 April 2026. Notice and papers for the AGM, including the required special resolution and final Articles of Association and Standing Orders, will be sent to Council members on 27 March 2026. Following the AGM, Ramblers has committed to setting up a separate collaborative project, building on the learning to date, to look at the operating model for Areas and Groups.

CHESHIRE EAST AREA

At the Cheshire East Area AGM the three Cheshire East Groups, ECR, South Cheshire and Congleton, agreed to engage in a discussion about a proposal raised by Brian Holmes, Vice Chair of North and Mid Cheshire, to consider collaborative working in the Ramblers Governance Review and the benefit of establishing an informal Networking Hub. The Chair of Merseyside and West Cheshire will be seeking endorsement to move forward with the proposal at Area Council on 13th January. 

The meeting is due to take place in February. I will keep you informed of any developments.

EUGENE SUGGETT

Dave Barraclough spotted at the beginning of December that Eugene Suggett, the Ramblers legal expert, was due to retire at the end of 2025. He informed me that Eugene had provided ECR with some expert legal advice over the years will be ‘hard to replace’. Dave felt we should acknowledge his contribution and with the help of Louise, and Neil Collie, we wrote to say ‘thank you’ for his support and expertise. Eugene sent ECR a very kind response.

Dear Maggie
 
Please would you in turn accept my grateful thanks, and convey them to anyone who had anything to do with the message, for the kind words and good wishes contained in your email of yesterday?  It's been an immense pleasure and privilege for me to have worked for the Ramblers these past 38 years, and I'm glad to learn that I've been of some assistance to the excellent work being done by volunteers in East Cheshire.
 
I'm also glad to say that the Ramblers would like to retain me for occasional help with some of the casework, so I won't be entirely "out to grass".  So, our paths may cross yet!
 
Thank you again for the kind words, which I appreciate very much and mean a good deal.
 
And all best wishes to you, too
 
Eugene
 
Eugene Suggett
Legal Casework Manager
Programmes Team
The Ramblers

WEBSITE
I have reconvened the Website Working Group which will meet on the 19th January. Nick Brearley and Richard Higham have kindly agreed to join the group. A report from the group will be available in time for the committee meeting.

The agenda will cover:
• Current position re Joomla – report back from Roger Fielding
• Back Office functions/tasks update – Nick Brearley has taken on additional ‘jobs’
• Changes to current website
• ‘Top Tips’ ECR Website Document for users
• Webmail addresses/Google Workspace
• Instagram Account – do we want/need one?
• An ECR ‘RA Walk Planner Document’ to help users with the mapping functions on ECR website
• AOB
• Next Steps

TRAINING 2026

Proposed programme for 2026. If you have any suggestions for the Walk Leader Event the training team would be delighted to hear them.

In addition to a day for ‘qualified’ Walk Leaders it is our intension to run a similar day to the Walk Leader training sessions we ran in 2025 but to open it to Cheshire East. The purpose of the day would be to support potential Walk Leader volunteers with a view to increasing Walk Leader numbers. The Training Team will meet in March to confirm the dates and the programme.

Training
For
When
Where
Cost

First Aid
Members
24 places

5th February 2026
9:00 – 16:00

Macclesfield
Tennis Club
Free to ECR Members
Walk Leader Event Cheshire East

TBC
TBC
TBC
TBC
Basic Map Reading
Members
16th July
10:00 – 16:00

Macclesfield
Tennis Club
Free to ECR Members
Ordnance Survey App Training
Members
27th August
10:00 -16:00

Macclesfield
Tennis Club
Free to ECR Members
Walk Leader Taster Session
Members
22nd October
10:00 – 16:00

Macclesfield
Tennis Club
Free to ECR Members

WALK LEADERS

I participated in a Ramblers zoom event in January with a focus on Walk Leader Recruitment. From the discussion it would appear that ECRs is deploying most of the strategies discussed in the meeting. Training, Walk Leaders Buddies, Walk Leader Events, emailing members to ask for volunteers etc. As with ECRs the most effective method seems to be developing a good relationship with potential walk leaders as we walk? It is also possible for non-members to lead walks as long as the person has completed the mandatory training.

It will probably come as no surprise to hear that Ramblers has extended the time limit for competition of the three mandatory training requirements for Walk Leaders. The Ramblers have issued the timeline below for 2026. Anne has shared this with all our Walk Coordinators

From 2 February, Walk Leaders must have completed the walk leadership requirements in order to lead walks.

Note: Through February, Walk Leaders will still be able to complete the self-assessment form and online training.  

From 2 March, Walk Leaders who have not completed the leadership requirements will no longer hold the role of a Ramblers Walk Leader. This means they will not be covered by Ramblers insurance.  These individuals must not lead any Ramblers groups walks.  

After 2 March, if Walk Leaders would like to have their roles reinstated, they can contact Anne Ball, the Membership Secretary, who can re-register them as volunteers. Once re-registered, they will have eight weeks to confirm that they have a relevant qualification or to complete the training modules.  (Having led 12 walks over 3 years will no longer be accepted).

Anne has done an excellent job working tirelessly to keep our Walk Leader record up to date and she will provide an update of ECRs’ position at the meeting.

My thanks, as always, to all the committee for everything you do for ECR.

Maggie Swindells 16th January 2026

Report 2 Treasurer
prepared by Margaret Kemble

1. Overview The balance of the ECR Unity Bank A/c at 15 Jan 2026 = £ 6886.37 Cr. This includes receipts for the Rudyard Lake talk in February. We have received the 1st quarterly budget payment from the RA of £325.00. Also, a commission payment of £110 from RA holidays. At the examination of last year’s Accounts, it was noticed that ECR had a total surplus of £2724.76 from our self-funded events over the last few years. As it is not our aim to make a profit, this should be spent where possible on members events.

2. Training
The two Walk Leaders training days cost a total of £677.46. In our Budget request from the RA, we had calculated £500 to cover this & the 1st Aid Training. At the time of the budget request we had not anticipated the need to put the majority of walk leaders through this process. Also, due to demand following the Walk Leader training we have paid a further £265 for an additional trainer for the first aid day, (The initial fee was paid from 2024/25 budget). These additional costs can be taken from our surplus.

3. Socials & Holidays
Five events have been held this accounting year. Mr Roe talk = £15.98 surplus. Ceilidh = £ 59.82 surplus. Davenport meal = £5.45 loss. Toby meal = £ 8.39 surplus.
Quiz = £45.65 surplus

4. Our annual donation of £100 was made to Edale Mountain Rescue team.

5. A list of tools held by Brian Richardson has been received and, as no item is worth more than £500, nothing needs to be noted in the Accounts. These can be distributed as we feel suitable.

Report 3 Footpath Secretary
prepared by Louise Whittaker

Report September 2025 to January 2026

FP Committee
Helen Gowing to attend FP Committee meeting [Feb 2026] as an ‘observer’ and potential new committee member.
2025 FP Inspections
Summary provided in AGM notes. Results for 2025 are showing an improvement against the deteriorating trend from 2022 through 2024.
2026 FP Inspections
Tony is preparing. Only a couple of retirees to be replaced.
Parish Boundary Changes
FP Database being updated to accommodate parish boundary changes. Roger is supporting. An administrative matter, and makes no difference ‘on the ground’. In October 2025, the FP Committee received a list of PROWs affected. Main changes are:
• Kettleshulme and Lyme Handley are merged into one parish: Kettleshulme & Lyme Handley. Lyme Handley paths have new numbers.
• Macclesfield Forest and Wildboarclough are merged into one parish: Macclesfield & Wildboarclough. Wildboarclough paths have new numbers.
• Some Wilmslow paths now sit in Alderley Edge and the two new parishes of Handforth & Styal.
Funding Request
Relates to above. Each FP Inspector is provided with a large print out of map showing the paths in ‘their’ parish. CEC have provided to ECR in the past, but will not going forward. CEC will provide an e-file. A printer in Whaley Bridge [Peartree Prints] has offered to print for £5/map. Excellent price. Due to the parish boundary changes we estimate we need to replace about 20 to 30 maps this year [still being worked through]. £5 x 30 = £150. Please can the ECR Main Committee consider funding this. We would like to replace all maps so next year we may refresh some of the maps not affected by the boundary changes so it is phased.
A54 Crossing
Previously ECR have pledged £500 towards a new permissive path to improve safety of Gritstone Trail crossing A54. Recent email from PROW – PROW visited in November 25 with Highways Road Safety Officer. They are not supportive. Very disappointing. ECR FP Committee will respond in writing so we have our concerns formally on file. [I will provide more details are next meeting].
New TCOs
Macclesfield FP 24 due to unsafe bridge.
Maintenance Tools
Email sent to Maggie.
Adlington New Town
A member of a community group that is challenging the shortlist of proposed new towns contacted ECR. Adlington is of particular interest to them as in designated greenbelt; agricultural land; ancient woodland etc We are providing a letter for them to ‘hold on file’ regarding effect of PROWs [e.g. loss of public amenity, access to countryside/open spaces etc].
Retirement at Ramblers
The legal casework manager at Ramblers CO, Eugene Suggett has retired. He has been of enormous help to FP Committee over many years. Ramblers indicate they will be seeking a replacement.
Meetings Pending
• Area FP Committee being scheduled for Feb/March 2026.
• CEC PROW Consultative meeting on 18th March 2026.
E-Working Space
Discussions & exploration of options on-going.

LW 16th January 2026

Report 4 Membership
prepared by Anne Ball

Membership Numbers

At 15 January 2026 we have 595 members and 25 affiliate members, a total of 620 on the ECR membership list. Membership numbers continue to be fairly stable, with new members making up for the loss of leavers.

Ramblers Database and Interaction with Central Office Help Desk

We are continuing to receive timely help from Ramblers in response to queries, with straight forward queries usually being answered in just a day or two. (The promised response time of 5-7 days remains in place)

Leadership Training Records

Teething problems with the walk leadership training records have been ironed out. The system for adding and removing volunteers on template spreadsheets, and then uploading them to Ramblers, works well and amendments are visible after only 24 hours.

Current Training Status of Walk Leaders

In November we had a total of 68 registered and certified Walk Leaders, and we expected that this would rise to 91 after both group training sessions had been held.
We have had a wonderful response from our Walk Leaders and all active walk leaders have now fulfilled the training requirement. At 15 January 2026 we now have 101 certified walk leaders.

Of the 101 certified leaders:
88 are registered as having ‘completed online training’
10 confirmed that they had led 12 walks in the last 3 years
3 confirmed that they held a Hill & Moorland Leader qualification#

16 members currently remain on the database as walk leaders but have not completed the walk leadership requirements. We have sent several emails to leaders over the past months, letting them know what the new leadership requirements are, and inviting to the group training events those that didn’t initially respond. Ramblers central office advised us that they were going to email those not yet trained three times in January (weeks commencing 5th, 19th, 27th). After the end of January, if these members have still not fulfilled the walk leadership requirement, they will not be able to lead walks and will be removed from ECR list of walk leaders.

Walk coordinators have been given a list of certified walk leaders and have been asked, to check their distribution list against this list, and only send requests for leaders to those who are validated.  As most of the programme for the first quarter has been filled, for most coordinators this will become relevant for the second quarter of the year.
Nick Brearly and Jennie Mellor who enter walk leaders’ names on the ECR website and Ramblers’ Walks Manager also have this list and can check against it before adding a leader to the ECR walks programme. Ramblers have said it will not be possible to add any uncertified leaders to Walks Manager. Updates to the list will be provided as they occur.

Ramblers Timeline for completing training

The Ramblers have issued this timeline for 2026:

From 2 February, Walk Leaders must have completed the walk leadership requirements in order to lead walks. Ramblers will notify those that have not done so that they should not be leading Ramblers group walks and they will not be able to make any changes on Walks Manager. Note: Through February, Walk Leaders will still be able to complete the self-assessment form and online training.  

From 2 March, Walk Leaders who have not completed the leadership requirements will no longer hold the role of a Ramblers Walk Leader.  This means they will not be covered by Ramblers insurance.  These individuals must not lead any Ramblers groups walks.

After 2 March, if Walk Leaders would like to have their roles reinstated, they can contact the Membership Secretary who can re-register them as volunteers. Once re-registered, they will have eight weeks to confirm that they have a relevant qualification or to complete the training modules.  Having led 12 walks over 3 years will no longer be accepted.

Volunteer Roles

The tables below bring together a record of the volunteer roles within ECR and the current holders of those roles.

ECR COMMITTEE

Role Holder
ECR Role
Ramblers Role Name
Maggie Swindells
Chair
Group Chair
Margaret Kemble
Treasurer
Group Treasurer
Steve Hull
Secretary
Group Secretary
Anne Ball
Membership Secretary
Group Membership Secretary
Steve Hull
Manages circulation lists
Sends out ECR emails
Group Membership Secretary Support
Gina Thompson
Social Secretary
Group Social Secretary
Jennie Mellor
Social Media Secretary
Group Committee Member
Jeremy Barnett
Committee member
Group Committee Member
Melanie Davy
Committee member
“
Richard Higham
Committee member
“
Terry Pritchard
Committee member -
“

WALKS PROGRAMME

Role Holder
ECR Role
Ramblers Role Name
All Walk Coordinators
Compile walks programme for their section.
Walks Coordinators to add JM and NB to their Walk Leader distribution lists so that they can be kept informed of programme updates as they occur.
WCs send JM a confirmation of their programme section quarterly
Group Walks Programme Coordinator
Lorraine Tolley
Walks Coordinator - Strollers
Group Walks Programme Coordinator
Denise Hutchinson
Walks Coordinator – Short MW
“
Jane Gay
Walks Coordinator – Short WE
“
Andy Davies
Walks Coordinator – Medium MW
“
Paul Higginbotham
Walks Coordinator – Medium WE
“

Anne Ball
Walks Coordinator – Long MW
+ Management of certified Walk Leader list
Group Walks Programme Coordinator
John Galligan
Walks Coordinator – Long WE
Group Walks Programme Coordinator
Steve Osborne
Walks Coordinator - Evening
“
(101 validated Walk Leaders)
Offer and lead walks on the ECR Walks Programme
Walk Leader

WEBSITE

Role Holder
ECR Role
Ramblers Role Name
Roger Fielding
Webmaster
Group Webmaster
Roger Fielding
Webpage Editor
Group Webpage Editor
Maggie Swindells
ECR Website and Events posting
Back-up for JM and NB
Adding GPX files to the walks programme
Group Online Walks Editor
Roger Fielding
Walks Editor
“
Jennie Mellor
Generating quarterly programme template for ECR and Walks Manager
Compiling ECR joint walks programme Ramblers ‘Walks Manager’ management 
Back up for NB
“
Nick Brearley
ECR Walks Programme website management: transferring individual walks from the Notice Board to the ECR Programme
“
Beth Marshall
Ramblers ‘Walks Manager’ management Posting on social media (Facebook and Instagram)
“
Terry Pritchard
Posting walk photos on website
“

FOOTPATHS

Role Holder
ECR Role/Tasks
Louise Whitaker
Footpath Secretary
Tony Battilana
Footpath committee member
Nick Brearley
“
Neil Collie
“
Gillian kay
“
Vacant - TBC
Footpath Maintenance Team Leader
(25 team members)
Footpath Maintenance Team Member
Tony Battilana
Footpath Inspectors Team Leader
(48 Inspectors)
Footpath Inspectors (Footpath Wardens)

WORKING GROUPS

Website working group
Maggie Swindells

Steve Hull

Anne Ball

Nick Brearley

Richard Higham

Training working group
Maggie Swindells

Jane Gay

Anne Ball

Gillian Kaye

Jeremy Barnett

Training Facilitators pool:
Sue Munslow

Dave Bryant

Steve Osborne

Gillian Kaye

Jane Gay

Maggie Swindells

Anne Ball

Jeremy Barnett

Report 5 Social Secretary
prepared by Gina Thompson

First report of the year but I must begin with a reflection of the Christmas Meals. The weekend lunch was held at Davenport Golf on 6th December 30 of us enjoyed a lovely meal, well cooked and beautifully served, prior to the lunch there was a ramble of 4 miles from Jacksons Bridge. The Midweek lunch at the Legh Arms was supported by around 50 ramblers and again was preceded by a 4 mile walk from Holehouse Lane. Thanks to Melanie Davy for organising this event and leading the walk.

1st January saw 47 of us on the infamous Sherry Walk, although cold the weather was bright and sunny and we saw the New Year in at The Cage in Lyme Park with a sherry and mince pie! Many thanks to Lorraine & Melanie for organising this.

Quiz Night on the 9th January was a fun night, many thanks to Ruth and Paul Simms for hosting the quiz and preparing the questions, although I was not on the winning team it was a very well thought out quiz which everyone enjoyed.

Our next event at the Tennis Club is on 6th February where Ray Perry of Rudyard Lake Trust will be giving a talk, Ray has previously addressed us and was very engaging, he tells me he has a new talk, I am sure he will be very interesting. So please come along and enjoy an evening with Ray Perry and some light refreshments.

We have plenty more events planned and being planned, please look at the Social Calendar for more information.

This is my final year as Social Secretary so I am trying for a very successful one. If you would like to join the committee and become the social secretary we’d love to hear from you.

Thanks to everyone who helps putting events together each year, and to those unsung heroes who help with setting up the room, washing up the dishes and clearing the room we would be lost without you!
No report as there is currently no one responsible for Lost Ways

Report 7 Social Media
prepared by Jennie Mellor

For the period ending 5th January 2026
Yet again – different graphics and information this quarter showing some very interesting statistics. Also note that some reports cover a different time period.
As always, thanks to Beth for posting our walks to Facebook and to Maggie for all the posting and sharing.

PERFORMANCE 9 Dec 2025 to 5 Jan 2026

CONTENT OVERVIEW 9 Dec 2025 to 5 Jan 2026

Content 11 Nov – 8 Dec 2025

Interactions 9 Dec 2025 to 3 January 2026
Note increase in content interactions and follows for this period.

POSTS
A small sample of posts over the past few days. Note the post “photos from Anne Marriott” attracted 324 views even though there was no description/location of the walk.
Also included the New Year’s Eve walk – 969 views and the New Year’s Day walk – 3,234 views!

Walk Numbers for 2025
prepared by Steve Hull
Thank you once again to all the coordinators who have provided our group with such a full, varied and interesting programme. I hope that 2026 will see an equally successful programme.
Special thanks to our retiring coordinators, Jane and Dave Collorick and Ralph Atherton for their many years coordinating various programmes. Best wishes for continued success to their successors, Steve Osborne and Denise Hutchinson.
Walk Numbers for 2021
Programme
LMW
LWE
MMW
MWE
SMW
SWE
EVE
STR
Jan to June

No. Walks
12
10
12
10
11
10
7
5
Max
11
11
13
16
22
19
12
15
Min
4
5
5
4
9
9
3
8
Mean
8
8
10
10
15
13
8
9
Median
8
8
11
11
15
12.5
8
8
July to Dec

No. Walks
25
17
20
18
25
23
8
8
Max
15
15
19
14
28
28
12
12
Min
3
5
6
4
3
3
3
4
Mean
9
10
11
7
15
13
9
7
Median
9
9
11
7
14
13
8.5
6

Walk Numbers for 2022
Programme
LMW
LWE
MMon
MThu
MWE
SMW
SWE
EVE
STR
Jan to June

No. Walks
24
20
23
26
22
26
25
8
5
Max
16
13
14
19
15
31
46
12
15
Min
4
4
2
2
4
7
4
6
3
Mean
8
8
7
11
9
17
14
9
8
Median
8
8
8
11
9
16.5
12
8.5
8
July to Dec

No. Walks
21
18
20
21
16
24
23
7
6
Max
15
15
15
20
17
33
27
11
13
Min
2
5
2
3
3
3
5
6
6
Mean
8
9
8
10
8
16
16
8
9
Median
7
9
8
9
8
15
16
8
9
Walk Numbers for 2023
Programme
LMW
LWE
MMon
MThu
MWE
SMW
SWE
EVE
STR
Jan to June

No. Walks
18
24
14
24
23
26
24
8
7
Max
16
17
11
14
25
26
27
10
16
Min
3
5
3
3
3
6
3
3
3
Mean
8
12
6
8
11
17
13
6
8
Median
8
12
6
8
10
17
12
4
5
July to Dec

No. Walks
22
19
14
16
18
25
24
7
8
Max
15
15
14
14
13
26
16
15
15
Min
3
1
4
3
2
3
3
4
3
Mean
8
10
7
7
7
13
10
8
7
Median
8
10
6
6
7
14
10
7
6.5

Walk Numbers for 2024
Programme
LMW
LWE
MMon
MThu
MWE
SMW
SWE
EVE
STR
Jan to June

No. Walks
22
22
11
15
21
21
24
4
7
Max
14
17
13
16
18
26
26
15
12
Min
2
4
5
2
2
7
5
2
5
Mean
8
10
9
9
10
15
13
9
8
Median
7
9
8
8
11
15
14
9
8
July to Dec

No. Walks
26
24
11
17
20
24
23
7
10
Max
16
16
11
16
20
21
22
15
15
Min
2
5
2
3
3
8
7
5
5
Mean
8
9
5
9
12
14
15
10
9
Median
8
9
4
8
12
15
15
9
9

Walk Numbers for 2025
Programme
LMW
LWE
MMon
MThu
MWE
SMW
SWE
EVE
STR
Jan to June

No. Walks
24
20
13
13
20
24
24
8
9
Max
13
19
13
18
18
25
25
12
18
Min
4
6
2
3
5
8
4
3
7
Mean
8
11
8
10
12
16
16
9
10
Median
8
10
8
11
12
17
16
11
8
July to Dec

No. Walks
27
21
10
11
20
24
23
7
11
Max
14
20
9
21
20
25
21
18
18
Min
4
4
2
5
3
7
2
3
2
Mean
9
10
6
11
11
14
13
11
11
Median
9
9
5
10
10
13
14
11
10

Notes
There were 27 people on the New Year’s Day Walk despite the floods. To start 2026 there were 47 people on the New Year sherry walk.
On the Clitheroe coach trip, the long, medium, short and stroller walks had 11, 15, 15 and 4 walkers respectively.
On the Ilkley weekend away the Saturday long, medium and short walks had 6, 14 and 9 people respectively. The corresponding number for Sunday were 4, 17 and 6.
None of these walks have been included in the figures above, although they may have been before 2024.
On the Kirkby Stephen weekend away the Saturday long, medium and short walks had 7, 13 and 7 people respectively. The corresponding number for Sunday were 11, 7 and 9. The Monday short walk had 10 people.
Summary of Walk Numbers Since 2010
Year
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
SMW
17
17
17
17
17
18
20
19
14
20

15
16
15
15
15
SWE
14
15
15
15
15
15
16
15
10
15

13
15
11
14
14
MMon

8
6
7
7
MMW
18
15
12
16
13
11
13
11
12
9

9

MThu
-
9
11
12
11
13
12
12
10
9

11
8
9
11
MWE
12
11
11
12
12
9
9
9
10
9

8
9
9
11
12
LMW
15
14
12
13
13
12
14
12
9
10

9
8
8
8
9
LWE
12
11
12
11
12
10
11
10
13
12

9
9
11
9
10
EVE
9
11
11
14
12
15
11
12
11
7

8
9
7
10
10
STR

17
14

8
9
8
9
10

Jan-Jun
Lost

The average number of walkers on all the programmes held up well in 2025. All the programmes either had the same number as last year or recorded a slight increase.
Thursday medium walks continue to be more popular than the Monday walks. This backs up the decision to increase the number of Thursday walks while keeping the Monday walks to once a fortnight.
Numbers on the medium weekend walks have recovered to match those in the early 2010s.
There has been a long-term decline in numbers going on walks. This is particularly apparent for long and medium midweek walks. Long walks had reduced numbers post covid and they have not recovered significantly since. Long weekend walks are now slightly more popular than their midweek equivalents which reverses the historic situation. We have lost a number of midweek long walkers and newer members seem to be keener on walking at weekends.
The mid 2010’s saw a much larger number of people on evening walks than over the last few years. The numbers have picked up slightly over the last two years. This year has seen fewer evening walks cancelled, presumably due to the better weather.
Stroller walk numbers do not seem to have been much affected by the change from Fridays to midweek, although numbers are still down on when the stroller programme was first introduced.
I can’t explain the temporary drop in short walk numbers in 2018

Minutes

 

Present
Maggie Swindells	MS	Chair
Steve Hull	SH	Secretary
Anne Ball	AB	Membership Secretary
Gina Thompson	GT	Social Secretary
Jeremy Barnett	JB	Committee Member
Melanie Davy	MD	Committee Member
Terry Pritchard	TP	Committee Member

1.	Apologies
	Louise Whittaker (LW) Footpath Secretary Margaret Kemble (MK) Treasurer Jennefer Mellor (JM) Social Media Richard Higham (RH) Committee Member
2	Minutes of Last Meeting - approved
2.1	No comments received
3	Matters arising from last meeting
3.1	None
4	Walk Programme
4.1	Midweek medium walks are successfully running every Thursday and alternate Mondays.
4.2	RH will circulate a list of suggestions for scrambles this year. AB said that it was hoped to run a ‘taster’ scramble.	Action RH
4.3	Stroller walks are starting in January this year and it is intended to run them throughout the year.
4.4	The new midweek short walks coordinator (Denise Hutchinson) may not have a complete list of emails for potential walk leaders. AB to contact her with a view to making sure her list is complete. It is not clear if the new evening walks coordinator (Steve Osborne) has received a complete list of emails for potential leaders from his predecessor (Ralph Atherton).	Action AB
5	Reports from Officers
5.1	Chair – Refer report
5.1.1	MS did not attend the meeting on 6th December 2025 concerning Ramblers governance proposals. The amended proposals are to be put to a general council meeting in April. MS will attend on behalf of Cheshire East.
5.1.2	A meeting is to be arranged in February with other groups in the Cheshire East Council area to discuss a potential ‘hub’ involving all the groups. MS is not available for any of the proposed dates. SH offered to stand in. MS said that Neil Collie might also be prepared to attend.	Action MS/SH
5.1.3	MS reported on discussions about the new website based on Joomla that she had had with Roger Fielding (RF). Progress had been good. The new system will be integrated with Ramblers Walk Manager (WM) and the current ECR programme system will be switched off. Concern was expressed that currently GPX files cannot be added to the programme and that ‘walks of the past’ did not now show details of the walk, although they did show photographs. TP raised the issue of passwords for people adding information, such as photographs, to the website. MS said she would provide passwords to those who needed them. There was a discussion about the information about leaders that should be made available in walk descriptions. Email addresses should definitely not be included (as had previously been suggested) and some leaders are reluctant to give out their phone numbers. WM does provide a facility for users to anonymously email the walk leader. It is hoped, in discussion with RF (Action MS), to start running the new Joomla/WM system from the 3rd quarter (July to September) of 2026. There will be no live dual running of the old and new systems, but there will be a period in which leaders will be encouraged to try out use of WM. AB pointed out that leaders will need to be comfortable using WM in June so that they can put details for July walks into the system. Ramblers provide instructions for Walks Manager and MD produced a quick check list when Ramblers introduced the process. Committee members agreed to review both. MS to provide link and check list. (Action MS) MS will discuss with JM about any new arrangements for uploading the skeleton programme to WM (Action MS/JM). JB said that the annual walk leader event could be brought forward and used to familiarise leaders with the new system. MS and JB thought there may be some on-line videos to help in this. Notes of the website working group should be appended to the minutes (Action MS/SH). The notes are appended to these minutes.	Action as in text
5.1.4	RH has proposed the use of Google Workspace to enable the committee to develop shared documents. RH has also suggested that this would provide a safer environment for ECR email accounts than the current system. MS has provided RH with the information that Google require in order to provide us with a free ‘charity’ account. SH was concerned about the delay this might cause to improving our current email distribution system.	Action RH
5.1.5	MS said that the training dates in her report were at present only provisional, and more information would be available after the next meeting of the training working group.
5.2	Treasurer - Refer Report
5.2.1	No discussion in the absence of MK.
5.3	Footpath Secretary - Refer report
5.3.1	MS reported that LW was dealing with the impact that recent parish boundary changes would have on footpath inspectors. Cheshire East Council were providing the changed definitive maps in digital form.
5.3.2	MS said that the local council had declined the offer of £500 towards diverting a footpath that currently runs along the A54 as there had been no accidents involving walkers along that stretch of road.
5.4	Membership Secretary - Refer Report
5.4.1	AB reported that 16 people on the list of leaders held by Ramblers were not marked as ‘qualified’ walk leaders. These people would be removed from the list in March, and if they wanted to lead again, would have to do the training courses.
5.4.2	AB has put the number of volunteers in the various categories in her report.
5.4.3	MS to circulate members with an update on various issues which will include the current state of play.	Action MS
5.5	Social Secretary - Refer Report
5.5.1	GT said that numbers so far enrolled for the Rudyard Lake talk on 6th February were low, and the event might have to be cancelled. SH to re-circulate details via email.	Action SH
5.5.2	GT was concerned about the visit to Port Sunlight on 27th March as it needed more people in order to make the coach affordable and to justify the cost of a second guide.	Action GT
5.5.3	A long walk leader is needed for the Llangollen coach trip on 9th May.
5.5.4	MD asked if it would be possible to add short walks to the three peaks trip in April. AB said there is no organised accommodation for this trip and also there was a lack of things to do in the Clapham/Settle area after the end of a short walk.
5.5.5	MD raised the possibility of organising a weekend away at the HF house in Sedbergh in 2027. The house can accommodate up to 38 people and had several single rooms. We would need 30 people in order to book the whole house exclusively. There would be a £100 fee for registering ECR as a group HF member. There was a discussion about the probable cost to members but the committee felt it was worth pursuing. MD was asked to pursue options.	Action MD
5.6	Lost Ways
5.6.1	We are still looking for someone to take on the Lost Ways coordinator role. SH suggested that we remove this item from future reports and agendas until we have someone in the role. This was agreed.	Action SH
5.7.	Social Media - Refer Report
5.7.1	MS reported that our Facebook site now has more than 1000 followers.
5.7.2	RH is to meet with JM to discuss a method for automatically adding posts to several social media sites.	Action RH/JM
6	FOOTPATH MAINTENANCE
6.1	MS said that it is intended to advertise for someone to lead the footpath maintenance team. The future remit of the team would be much more limited than in the past. MS also said that Cheshire East PROW was now much more active in maintaining footpaths than previously.	Action MS
6.2	It had been agreed that most of the tools currently owned by ECR would be donated to the Canal and River Trust. LW would arrange to store some tools, but many of the tools were only fit for scrap. Any remaining, unwanted or unfit equipment/tools would be scrapped and if need be ECR would cover the cost of collection by Cheshire East.	Action LW
6.4	Review of the draft safety guidance for footpath maintenance teams recently circulated by Ramblers should be left to the footpath committee.	Action LW
7	WEBSITE
7.1	Discussed under the chair’s report above (5.1.3)
8	EMAIL AND SECURITY
8.1	Discussed under the chair’s report above (5.1.4)
9.	2026 CHRISTMAS ARRANGEMENTS REVIEW
9.1	GT reported that the weekend Christmas lunch had been booked for Saturday 12th December. Long and medium weekend walks coordinators are to be asked to arrange walks on their programmes for the following day to avoid a clash.	Action MS
9.2	AB said that she understood that John Galligan was looking into booking a meal at Sutton Hall to follow a Saturday long walk in the lead-up to Christmas. It would be useful to have a date for this soon.	Action AB
10.	AOB
10.1	There was no other business.
11	Meeting Dates
11.1	Committee meetings for 2026 were provisionally set for the following dates: Monday 13th April Monday 13th July Monday 21st September The 2026 AGM was provisionally scheduled for Saturday 28th November. MS asked that all future bookings for the Tennis Club should go through GT to avoid confusion.	Action GT

Meeting Ended: 2.40 pm

The meeting was followed by an informal demonstration and discussion of the latest progress on the new Joomla website.

 

Notes from Website Working Group Meeting 19^th January 2026

Maggie Swindells (MS)

Anne Ball (AB)

Steve Hull (SH)

Nick Brearley (NB)

Richard Higham (RH)

Apologies

Jennie Mellor (JM)

1. Current position re Joomla – report back from RF

MS has spoken to Roger Fielding (RF) and provided notes on progress with Joomla and will send out a link to the trial system (Action MS). Progress has been good.

We need to agree a date for the transition from our current website with RF.  (Action MS/RF)

We also need to agree a date at which the current notice board system will be switched off and leaders will post walks directly in to Walks Manager (WM). WM can be linked directly to the Joomla system so a lot of the current process will no longer be necessary. The transition is likely to be for walks in the third quarter of 2026. There will be no parallel running of WM and the notice board. Meanwhile an email will be sent to walk leaders giving an update on progress and the expected timeline for the transition. (Action MS).

Specific points raised on the Joomla system were: adding GPX files to WM; how photographs from walks are to be made available; provision of a dedicated tab for footpath matters (Action MS to speak with Louise Whitaker); changes to the Joomla home page to make it more attractive, especially the photographs.

There was some discussion about what information could be supplied about starting points; WM has provision for grid references and post codes, but not for What3Words.

There was a discussion about registering users on walks, whether it was necessary and could it be done using the volunteer app on phones.

2. Back Office functions/tasks update

NB reported that RF had given him access to do housekeeping on emails and starting points. He also hoped that he could take some of the admin tasks off RF to free RF up for work on the new system.

In order to post a walk in WM a walk leader needs to be registered as a volunteer. It was also noted that, in contrast to the current notice board, if a walk leader changes details of a posted walk, the earlier details will be removed.

RH asked if walk coordinators could approve walks in in WM. MS replied that it might be possible in future, but not intended to implemented in the short term.

3. Changes to current website

It is intended to spend some time after the committee meeting on 26^th January for the working group + Melanie Davy (MD) to discuss the draft proposals from AB, MD, MS.

4. Top Tips ECR Website

No discussion. No longer relevant.

5. Webmail addresses and instructions

RH suggested that we should use Google Workspace (which is free for charities) to allow sub-groups to work on documents in a common place.

RH also said that Google Workspace could be used to provide secure email addresses for ECR.

RH said that we should investigate the use of Instagram alongside Facebook as that was the preferred method of communication for many people. MS suggested that JM and possibly Beth Marshall should be involved in this work.

(Action RH to produce a document on ECR communications via Google Workspace)

6. RA Walk Planner document

MS questioned the need for a walk planner on the website. It was felt that most people used Outdoor Active or Ordnance Survey for this purpose. Instruction document to be updated to reflect new website when it is up and running. (Action MS)

7. AOB

SH raised the problems with the current Mailchimp system for distributing ECR emails. RH pointed out that there were reasons why some mails were being rejected or classified as spam and would look into making changes to our domain to fix this (Action RH/SH)

There was uncertainty about Ramblers policy with regard to GDPR. (Action AB/RH/SH)

It is hoped that in the longer term there will be an easier way of sending emails out through Joomla. Meanwhile Mailchimp seems to be the application recommended by Ramblers.

8. Next Steps

MS will arrange a further working group meeting after the next main committee meeting (Action MS).

Group: East Cheshire Group