Eco-champ Barbara bowing out with parting gift
AN environmental charity worker who has led hundreds of rambles all over Hyndburn has produced a fascinating series of guided walks as she says goodbye to the organisation.
Barbara Sharples is moving on to pastures new after leaving the Accrington-based PROSPECTS Foundation at the end of August, bringing to a close an association of nearly 24 years.
Having returned from a period of furlough in her most recent staff role as the activity organiser, environmental awareness, Barbara finished off a series of 14 ‘Discover Hyndburn’ selfguided walk leaflets, which she leaves behind as a legacy of her years in the role.
The Great Harwood gran, who turned 70 in June, has reflected on many happy times in the various positions she has held within the charity.
“I’ve had such an amazing time and made so many friends,” she told the Observer.
“It’s always sad when something comes to an end, but it’s good to take the positives and there have been lots.”
After joining the Great Harwood PROSPECTS Panel in November 1996, Barbara chaired the PROSPECTS Environment Forum, and in 2002 became a charity trustee and company director of The PROSPECTS Foundation, until 2014.
She said that local panels were set up for each township in the mid-1990s as part of Local Agenda 21, an initiative promoting sustainable development and handling climate change. The organisation has developed from there with activities across all the borough’s townships including volunteer conservation work in woodland, towpath improvements in partnership with the Canal and Rivers Trust, schools work and walking and cycling groups.
“I joined Great Harwood PROSPECTS Panel in 96 and it became a constituted group in 97,” said Barbara. “I just started getting involved, and then I was made secretary. I learned an awful lot and went on some really good courses that were organised at the time - on permaculture and various things. I learned absolutely loads. My garden is just full of bees, wasps and butterflies and birds because of what I’ve learned.”
Barbara, who has sons Simon and Andrew and two granddaughters, said while lockdown had inevitably set back local activities, it did offer the opportunity to put together the Discover Hyndburn series.
The self-guided walk leaflets are aimed at everybody from people new to walking, those returning to it, people new to the area and visitors, and also ramblers wishing to explore Hyndburn and the surrounding areas.
They range from shorter walks of 2-3 miles, medium walks 3-6 miles and longer walks of 7-10+ miles covering all types of terrain.
The leaflets also include local history information and the routes pass by key features, go via woodlands and greenspace areas or places maintained by local volunteers.
Barbara, who is still a keen walker despite two hip replacements a decade ago, said the routes promise to uncover ‘hidden gems’, even for long-standing residents.
“I must have done hundreds of walks all over and we never had time to write them up and share them,” she said.
“Not being able to go out and actually lead walks gave me a fabulous opportunity to sit down and write them up. I hope everybody who goes out on those walks will have as much pleasure out of them as I’ve done. I’ve put lots of local history in there. I have led walks and had people say ‘gosh, Barbara I’ve lived here for 35 years and I didn’t know this bridleway or this historic farm existed’. People tend to do the same walk every time. They walk the footpaths but they don’t stop and notice things and look left and right. With these leaflets there’s history there.
“I wanted to cover all the townships and in some cases I wanted to go outside the borough boundary. Going down into Whalley and then back round to encourage people to venture that bit further afield. If I had had longer I could have easily done another seven walks. Unless someone else remembers them they’re lost and that’s a shame.”
Barbara, who was presented with a dedication award after 20 years’ service, said most of her friends are now fellow walkers and the close-knit walking community has shown its strength in spite of the obvious restrictions posed by the pandemic.
She has yet to decide on her next step, but says she would like to build on her relationship with the Canal and Rivers Trust, and use the knowledge and skills she has gained down the years.