Resources for Walk Leaders
Introduction.
This page is designed to offer help and advice to anyone seeking to lead a walk during the Walks Programmes created by the group. The information can largely be applied to either Main or Leisure Walks, and should be viewed as friendly guidance derived from those within the group who have learned from their own experiences of walk leading and are seeking to share this with others.Useful Guidance notes.
This is a small pamphlet written within the group that aims to capture the stages that walk leaders should consider when planning a walking event. The sections are not hard and fast rules, but offered as sensible advice to those planning a walk for the first time.These notes can be downloaded pre-sized to print the pamphlet as an A5 sized booklet should you need it. - Please note that you will need Microsoft Word installed on your computer for this, if you do not have it installed there is a free 'viewer' available from Microsoft that will enable you to print the document. The Viewer can be downloaded from here
View Guidance Notes
Emergency procedures.
If an unforeseen event occurs that prevents a leader from attending the walk he/she has planned, the steps to take are as follows:1/. Contact the Walks Coordinator, (Marguerite Greenwood for Leisure Walks and Kevin Wilcox for Main Walks), and inform them of the situation as soon as possible. Do not leave this until the day of the walk unless this is unavoidable.
2/. The appropriate Walk Coordinator will then seek to arrange a walk in place of that for which the leader is indisposed based on their contacts with other leaders within the group.
3/. The Walk Coordinator will announce this walk at the gathering point of the original walk as this is where ramblers will be expecting to gather based on the information in the programme. (In the event that some people may have chosen to make their way to the actual walk starting point - efforts will be taken to inform them of the change of plans accordingly
4/. Unless there is a second leader available who is confident to lead the original walk then the Coordinator will offer an alternative walk wherever possible. (They will not try to re-create the original walk, and this will have to be re-planned for another date on a future programme).
This situation, which fortunately has occurred very infrequently, supports the theory that walks are best planned in pairs, so that not only is a second leader available to take over the walk on the day, but also ensures there is a competent back-marker should the walk proceed under normal circumstances. Finally, the pairing of leaders organising a walk is also a sensible precaution in the interests of safety.
Publicity.
We are continually striving to maintain our numbers within the group, and this is best helped by gaining as much publicity as possible for forthcoming walks. This is currently undertaken in a number of ways, but chief amongst these are notices in the Walsall Express and Star and also on the group's web site.In order to make walks as attractive as we can the Publicity Officer, (Pat Taylor), needs as much information as possible to form up web descriptions and press releases. For the web-site it is also possible to show photographs of planned walks to give potential walkers an idea of what they might be experiencing if they come along. However, both media require some written information to describe the outline of the walk, and although this does not need to be exhaustive, our experience tells us that the articles we get into the Express & Star are more visible if they contain some more rather than less in the way of text.
Example.
To give leaders an idea of what is required, here is a recent walk description what was picked up in its entirety by the newspaper and printed in the week prior to the walk being undertaken.
The walk follows Offa's Dyke over Panpunton and Cwn-Sanaham hills. We then pass Knucklas Castle and Viaduct before climbing to the site of Knighton Racecourse. The route then skirts Garth Hill to return to the start through the town.
For guidance on any of this, please contact Pat Taylor. email
Map Library.
For those new to Walk Leading you should be aware that the Group has a library of local maps and books of walks for leaders to borrow when planning and undertaking a walk, so it's not necessary to purchase your own (unless you want to, of course). John Gillmon is the Map Library custodian, so anyone needing a map or book should contact John in the first instance. If we don't have the map you require in the library then we have limited funds to purchase it and add it to those already in the library.Maps
The list of books of walks is available here
Books
Leaders Meetings.
These are usually announced in the walks programme and are generally held in The Dilke, Aldridge Road, unless otherwise specified.These days much of the programme building goes on outside these meetings, with the Coordinators (Marguerite and Kevin) approaching known leaders throughout the current programme and asking for ideas and possible dates for the future one. Both our coordinators are always on the look out for new leaders, so don't wait for them to approach you, or leave coming forward too long in case you are disappointed to find the programme is full. The best advice here is that if you have an idea for a walk you should make yourself known to them at any time and they can 'pencil' you in. Both coordinators and all the other walk leaders can provide helps and assistance in the preparation of your walk and new leaders can approach anyone in the group for advice if required.
The Leaders Meetings then are predominantly used for confirming programme entries and checking that the new programme is as balanced as possible in terms of places, leaders and variety. Hence the Leaders Meeting is to a large extent a social gathering of the group and so non-leaders can also attend as can anyone wishing to find out more about the group prior to trying a walk with us for the first time.
Map Reading Course.
From time to time we hold short courses within the group to help potential leaders master the skills of map reading and compass work. These courses last for about a day and are normally run by our most experienced leaders. Everyone is welcome to attend even if you are not necessarily planning to lead a walk anytime soon, but we do need to know how much interest there is in the group before we commence preparations for these events.At the moment we're thinking of arranging a course in the Autumn, so if you have been thinking about this recently then please contact a member of the committee and make your interest known. (We have to limit each course to 6-8 people maximum, and we need a minimum of 4 to make it worth while, so it can be a case of first come first served once the date is announced)
Back Markers.
We are currently urging all walk leaders to engage a back marker for their walk for a number of reasons. As mentioned above there are safety aspects to organising walks as an individual, but actually leading a walk unaided can be tricky at times and possibly more demanding than a new leader might desire.We have recently had cases of people breaking off from the back of a walk for a 'comfort stop' without notifying anyone they plan to do this and resulting in a few minutes of concern until they are relocated again. This can occur partly because there is no back-marker to inform of what they are doing and who can remain close by to ensure they do not 'go missing' when they return to the path. Back markers are also useful as an indication to the leader of the end of the group allowing him to move forward knowing that no-one should be behind his back-marking colleague. For those who do prefer to organise their walks signally, it is suggested that they nominate a back-marker at the start of the actual walk itself from volunteers, so that even if the person taking this role is not familiar with the route being taken, they can at least ensure no one is left behind.
Proposed Walks for Future Programmes.
The winter 2009/10 Walks Programme is already in the making, and both Leisure and Main Walk Coordinators are seeking leaders to help fill the weekly slots. Already we have had several people offering to lead walks and we have such places as Abbot's Bromley, etc. being considered. If you have any plans then please approach the coordinators accordingly and let them capture your ideas.An important update from the Chairman
Dear Walk Leaders,As you'll no doubt be aware, the committee and myself have been looking into the question of whether should make any changes to the current Walk Programme in order to facilitate a wider number of walks for our group members.
We held a Walk Leaders meeting recently at the Dilke that many leaders attended, and several suggestions were discussed. We also talked about ensuring the safety of walking groups and what we could do to assist our Walk Leaders within the group.
Accompanying this letter are several documents that have arisen as part of the output of that meeting, and I would urge you to take a few minutes to read these. Please be aware that we are not attempting to constrain Walk Leaders or make walk leading particularly onerous, since we know it is something leaders enjoy. Our aims are solely help and guidance for Walk Leaders and if our suggestions are not what leaders wish to undertake then we really cannot force them to accept them. However, we do urge all leaders to think about what we are saying and examine how these suggestions could be incorporated into their future walks wherever possible.
You should find in this mailing either the following items or where they can be obtained:-
1/. The minutes of the Walk Leaders meeting on Friday 21st October at the Dilke PH.(here)
2/. The latest 'brief' insurance guide for Walk Leaders based on the current RA Civil Liabilities Insurance package.(Available from Chairman).
3/. A short definition of what we believe a Leisurely Walk should comprise. (This is based on information from the original aims of the Leisurely Walks when they were first conceived).(here)
4/. A list of what we term 'Good Practices' that we hope leaders will feel happy to incorporate into their walks if they don't already do so.(here)
5/. A short form seeking the availability of experienced Walk Leaders who might want to provide assistance in one way or another to those beginning their walk leading 'careers'. (If you can help this should be returned to either the chairman or any committee member so that a comprehensive list of helpers can be produced and circulated.)
Finally, but very importantly, we have decided that the forthcoming Summer Walk Programme should be the platform for 'testing the ground' with regards to extending the range of walks we currently have on offer.
The priority is firstly to fill the normal programme slots for both the Main and Leisurely walks (i.e. one walk of each sort on alternate weekends as we currently do now), and I would expect you to be currently receiving requests from the Walk Coordinators for these walks in readiness for the start of February meeting. However, alongside this we are throwing it open to Walk Leaders to offer any walk(s) they might want to be considered in addition, so that we can use as many as possible in the new programme. This might include linear walks, sections of major long distance paths, themed walks, midweek walks, super recces, extended main walks, evening walks, etc. This is our opportunity to try out one or two different things and see how they work (or don't) without anyone feeling they might be taking a risk with their leadership reputation. Remember, the additional walks apply to both Leisurely as well as Main walks, so if you have something you want to try then please come forward as soon as possible to the appropriate coordinators and they can try to find a suitable position for it in the programme.
If your initiative doesn't make it this time around then please be patient and we'll hope to give it a go next time around.
There will be a meeting of the Walk Coordinators and key committee members early in the New Year to discuss the programme situation, as the general feeling is that the additional events might prove too much arrange at just the February Walks meeting. So if you have ideas/suggestions (and perhaps dates you might want to try them out on) then please get back to the coordinators ASAP.
[Our Summer evening walks are always well attended, so if you have any ideas for these, especially if you haven't done one before then Marge will be particularly pleased to hear from you].
Lastly, we'd like to make sure we can contact you regularly in case of changes or just with news of what might be going on in the group, so wherever possible this information should have reached you by email. If it came in the regular post then we don't have an email address for you should you have one. We'll continue to use the post for anyone who doesn't have an email address, but if you do have one then it would save us some money on postage and printing).
Thank you again for all your time and efforts, - now is our chance to 'step-out' that little bit further.
Yours Sincerely,
Dick Turton.