Councillor Barnes will be meeting local people at two walks to highlight International Day of Disabled Persons and European Day of Disabled People on Saturday 3 December 2005.
The walks have been organised by the County Council and will take place at Shinewater, Eastbourne and Pebsham, between Hastings and Bexhill. The short walks have been designed specifically for people with disabilities and are part of work supported by European funding.
Councillor Barnes said: "The walks on Saturday 3 December are an example of what can be achieved when the Council and local disability groups and volunteers work together. I hope as many people as possible come along on the day, help us mark this international disability awareness event and give us ideas for improving access for all.”
At Shinewater Park in Eastbourne, the Council has organised a walk for people who are deaf or who are hearing impaired. A story-teller and interpreter with sign language skills will be with the group, along with County Council countryside rangers. The walk, along the path around the lake, starts at 10am from the main entrance in Larkspur Drive and will last for up to two hours.
The second walk takes place at the proposed Pebsham Countryside Park near Bexhill. This walk has been specifically designed for people who are blind or partially-sighted and features bird song. The walk starts at the Wyvale garden centre, off Bexhill Road at 10am. This walk will also take about two hours to complete.
The Council has also organised two other events to support the disability awareness day and focus on improving countryside access for all. At the County Council’s Seven Sisters Country Park, near Seaford, an all day seminar will take place for disability organisations, exploring ideas for improvement with the County Council. And at Rye Harbour Nature Reserve, the County Council will welcome representatives from disability groups and conservation site managers from Normandy, France. The group will look at the disabled access work done so far at the Nature Reserve and make suggestions for future work.
Notes to editors
The Chairman of the County Council will be attending three of the events on Saturday 3 December, including the two public walks. He will be at Shinewater at 11.15am to greet the walkers and will then travel over to Pebsham for about 12 noon to welcome back participants at the end of their walk. The Chairman will then attend the site visit at Rye Harbour Nature Reserve at about 1.30pm. For further information please contact Simon Hickmott, Environment Manager at East Sussex County Council on 01273 482660 (mobile 07712 135232).
The European Funding is from the EU INTERREG fund.
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