After a hugely successful year in 2024, our Moor Boots small grant giving scheme is returning for 2025. We will once again be working with the organizers of Ten Tors, utilizing the structure of Team Managers to identify and put forward the young people in most need of support. We are also partnering with Ice Warrior in Princetown to offer discounts on equipment for young people awarded a Moor Boots grant. Applications opened this week and we have already been made aware of many young people who lack the appropriate clothing, footwear and waterproofs to train for Ten Tors successfully. We hope to remove these financial barriers to equipment for as many applicants as possible.

Many people from less privileged backgrounds find getting out on the moor a challenge. Young people are especially affected, with factors including poverty, lack of transport, fear of the unknown and low confidence preventing them from accessing Dartmoor. This can result in a loss of connection to nature, which in turn may make it less likely that these young people will support conservation and preservation activities in the future.

The purpose of the Moor Boots scheme is to directly address the financial challenge of access to suitable footwear and camping equipment for young people living in and around Dartmoor’s rural communities. Through doing this, the DPA aim to increase youth engagement on Dartmoor and improve young peoples’ confidence in accessing nature. After the equipment has been used for Ten Tors, the young people can keep if for future activities and outdoor adventures.

Young people who have had the opportunity to build a relationship with Dartmoor, through taking part in activities such as Ten Tors and the Duke of Edinburgh’s award, are equipped with a more intimate knowledge of the moor as a precious and beautiful landscape. This prepares them to step up and become the future stewards of the moor, ensuring that the generations that follow them can benefit from the same inspiration and health benefits.

In 2024, kit was funded for over seventy young people, some of whom were supported in accessing Dartmoor for the first time. This provision not only helped these young people to be more comfortable in Dartmoor’s changeable weather and terrain, but it allowed them to show up looking well presented and prepared. The confidence that comes from looking the part, rather than looking like the odd one out, cannot be overlooked, especially for young people coming from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The investment in ‘Moor Boots’ goes far beyond purchasing a pair of sturdy walking boots. It is also an investment in young people, community and the future of Dartmoor. As we know that being in nature supports mental health, with especially high benefits coming from spending time in biodiverse landscapes such as Dartmoor, it is important to make accessing nature safely and responsibly as easy as possible. We also know that nature needs our help. Young people who have had these meaningful interactions with the moor are more likely to develop a deeper appreciation and respect for nature, perhaps using their newfound confidence to speak out for the natural world.