ORN Awards 2025

ORN Success Awards 2025 – Celebrating Excellence in Outdoor Recreation!

Building on the success of the 2024 awards, the 2025 ORN Success Awards celebrated trailblazing projects that are tackling key challenges in outdoor recreation – aligned with the ORN Action Plan (2025-2028). ORN Success Awards were awarded for the following categories, spotlighting the outstanding work happening across the outdoor recreation sector.

Best Practice for Improving Access & Accessibility
Best Project for Enhancing Health & Wellbeing
Lifetime Achievement Award (peer-nominated)
Best Example of Maximising Impact with Limited Resources
Best Project for Protecting Nature & Responsible Access
Outstanding Contribution from a Small Organisation

ORN 2025 Award Winners

Best Project for Enhancing Health & Wellbeing- Active Forests

A ten year partnership between Forestry England and Sport England, aims to foster a lifelong habit of physical activity by leveraging the natural environment of forests.

Best Practice for Improving Access and Accessibility - Centre for Outdoor Accessibility Training (COAT) - Unlocking Nature videos

Driving positive action and increasing provision of accessible green space across England through training, demonstration, and development of Best Practice. A project by Natural England helping land managers select accessible gates.

ORN Lifetime Achievement - Tom Bindoff

Recognising Tom Bindoff's 40+ years services to the outdoor recreation sector and the significant and lasting impact he has made.

Best Project for Protecting Nature and Responsible Access - Bird Aware Solent

Bird Aware Solent is a leading example of how behaviour change and positive engagement can protect sensitive coastal habitats while maintaining public access. Through ranger engagement, targeted investment and partnership working, the project supports both internationally important bird populations and millions of recreational visits each year.

Best Example of Maximising Impact with Limited Resources - Land & Wave Ltd

The Big Purbeck Campout delivered by Land & Wave Ltd demonstrates how limited funding can deliver exceptional social impact. Through strong local partnerships and a blended funding model, Land & Wave subsidised outdoor adventure experiences by up to 64%, fully funding places for children eligible for Free School Meals. Despite tight timelines, the project engaged six local schools and enabled hundreds of young people to access high-quality outdoor experiences.

Outstanding Contribution from a Small Organisation - Leave No Trace Ireland

Despite its small size, Leave No Trace Ireland has achieved national impact, reaching millions of people through education, campaigns and community action. The organisation plays a vital role in embedding responsible outdoor behaviours across Ireland, empowering people to protect the places they love.

2025 Nominations

Best Project for Enhancing Health & Wellbeing

Active Forests

A ten year partnership between Forestry England and Sport England, aims to foster a lifelong habit of physical activity by leveraging the natural environment of forests.

Ramblers Scotland’s Community Outreach Project - HIGHLY COMMENDED

A project that aims to remove barriers that prevent refugees, asylum seekers, and people from Global Majority communities from accessing and enjoying Scotland’s outdoors.

Best Practice for Improving Access and Accessibility

Access the Dales

A charity set up to enable those with mobility difficulties to access the countryside.

Centre for Outdoor Accessibility Training (COAT) - Natural England unlocking Nature videos

Driving positive action and increasing provision of accessible green space across England through training, demonstration, and development of Best Practice.

Forestry England - Access for All

3 years,70 ambitious projects completed at 34 forests to improve access to nature for those who need it most.

Best Project for Protecting Nature and Responsible Access

Bird Aware Solent - WINNER

Bird Aware Solent's project 'supporting responsible access to nature along the Solent coastline' works to reduce disturbance to wildlife by encouraging small changes in how people use the coast, helping birds and people share the space in harmony.

Forestry England - HIGHLY COMMENDED

The 'Bin there, done that' project protects wildlife and preserve the nation’s forests for future generations by removing litter bins from forest centres, encouraging visitors to follow the Countryside Code, take their rubbish home and recycle it responsibly.

National Trails UK

The National Trails 'Nature Hub' is the first step in delivering the vision of all 8,500 kms of National Trails becoming wildlife rich corridors – places where nature can recover and everyone can access its benefits.

Leave No Trace Ireland

LNTI, in partnership with Deloitte and Bord na Móna, delivered an innovative peatland restoration project at Ballaghurt Bog, Co. Offaly. The initiative combined environmental action, volunteer engagement, and education to restore degraded peatlands.

Best Example of Maximising Impact with Limited Resources

Land & Wave Ltd - WINNER

The Big Purbeck Campout by Land & Wave (Sept 2025) is a 24-hour adventure camp for local schools, offered at cost. Thanks to funding, 100 children on free school meals will attend for free. Six schools are already signed up to help kids enjoy nature.

Venture Out Wilderness Project CLG - HIGHLY COMMENDED

Venture Out design and deliver a range of creative outdoor and nature based youth work and social care focused programmes, targeting those from disadvantaged and marginalised communities.

Hampshire County Council

The 'Parish Pollinator Pledge' empowers communities to take low-cost, high-impact action for pollinators. From a pilot, it’s grown to 56 groups. Using free training, expert support, and existing resources, it inspires self-led action aligned with national strategies.

Forestry England

Creation of a virtual forests hub, using existing resources and delivered with no budget, to connect people with nature from anywhere. Virtual forest resources are supporting NHS and charities to deliver improved patient care at no cost to them.