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Choose from the following 2 activities:
* This or the second activity should be undertaken before carrying out your choice of the remainder of the activities.
Suggested Method:
Explain that the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 means that everyone in Scotland has the right to be on most land and inland water for recreation, education and for going from place to place, provided they act responsibly. Show photo cards A, B, C. The outdoors can be a busy place! What problems might occur with all these different users using the same places? How might these be overcome?
Show photo cards D, E and F. What activities do these photographs represent? What is the key difference between these users of the outdoors and the users in the first three photographs? (The first showed recreational users, the second represent livelihoods gained in the outdoors). What concerns might land managers have about recreational users accessing their land? How can they convey these concerns? One way is through signage – show photo card G and discuss the signs depicted, using the discussion points on the back to help. How can recreational users show respect for land management activities?
Bring together your previous discussions – there is potential for conflict in
the outdoors (between different users and between users and land
managers) but the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 means that
everyone in Scotland has the right to be on most land and inland water
for recreation, education and for going from place to place, providing
they act responsibly. How should users and land managers behave in
order to act responsibly? Is there a need for a code of behaviour?
Brainstorm with the group what this might this include.
Tell the children that there is a code and it is called the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. It is based on 3 key principles: Respect the interests of other people, Care for the environment and Take responsibility for your own actions. It applies to both recreational users and land managers. Ask for examples from your discussions that illustrate each of the key principles. You may like to play The Three Key Principles game.
If you have time, divide the children into small groups and give each group a photo card. Ask them to discuss the access rights and responsibilities associated with each picture. They should discuss the rights and responsibilities of land managers as well as recreational users.
Ask each group to report back to the others about the issues represented by their photo. Repeat the exercise with a new card for each group, if time allows. The questions on the reverse of the cards can be used to help prompt discussion. Extracts from the Code are provided to help with the answers and with questions from the children.
Finish by asking if the group thinks that the Code is a good thing for them? Why? Do they feel that the Code is a good thing for landowners? Why?