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Delve deep into the woods at Forest of Dean

Heritage Ability Locations

Forest of Dean

Equipment Available: 2 Trampers
Environment: Forest/Woodland
Facilities: 
  • Accessible parking
  • Accessible toilets
  • Information centre
  • Cafe or shop
  • Dog friendly

Nestling between the Wye Valley, the Vale of Leadon and the Severn Valley, the Royal Forest of Dean is one of England's few remaining ancient forests, covering 27,000 acres of woodland. Designated as a National Forest Park in 1938, this Queen of Forests boasts a spectacular range of natural beauty combined with an aura of magic and mystery that has been the inspiration for many great artists and writers including JRR Tolkien, Dennis Potter and JK Rowling.

Accessible activities

We're working with a number of different popular locations around the Forest of Dean. Each one has a different combination of accessible resources.

Tramper - an all-terrain mobility scooter to help people with limited mobility access the outdoors. You can currently hire this at two locations in the Forest of Dean, both of which have one Tramper. The first location is Forest Holidays, near Coleford, where you can access a choice of two trails - one leading to the popular viewpoint of Symond's Yat Rock. The second hire point is Speech House Hotel, from which you can access the Cyril Hart Arboretum, Speech House Lake, the Geomap at New Fancy, and Mallard's Pike Lake - once voted the best picnic spot in the South West. Provided through Countryside Mobility.

BSL Guided Tour - You can now enjoy the history and stories behind this place by borrowing a tablet loaded with British Sign Language videos in two locations at the Forest of Dean; Hopewell Colliery and the Dean Heritage Centre. You can also view them on our Heritage Ability YouTube channel using your own device. Make sure you’re subscribed!

Easy read interpretation - a guide which details the history and stories behind the site in plain English, supported by imagery.  Available now at Hopewell Colliery and Dean Heritage Centre, or by clicking the images below.

Hopewell Colliery Easy Read

Dean Heritage Easy Read

Visual Guide - a guide to prepare you for your visit, detailing any unwelcome surprises. Download by clicking the images below.

Hopewell Colliery Visual Guide

Dean Visual Guide

Large print format - designed to help people with visual impairments understand the history and stories at the site. Available now at Hopewell Colliery and Dean Heritage Centre or by downloading below.

Hopewell Colliery:

  • Download Large Print text HERE

Dean Heritage Centre:

  • Download Large Print text HERE
  • Download Large Print map HERE

Staff and volunteers have received Disability Awareness Training and Deaf Awareness Training

Contact Forest of Dean

Address:

Forest of Dean, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 7EU

Telephone:

01594 837165

Find Forest of Dean:

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