Project Location
South West Coast Path National Trail and East Devon Way (promoted route)
Description
East Devon National Landscape contains two distinctive long-distance walking routes between Lyme Regis and Exmouth: a 30-mile stretch of the South West Coast Path and a 39-mile inland East Devon Way. The Connecting Coast and Country project began from the recognition that, despite the area’s popularity for walking, moving between the coast and inland routes is not always straightforward.
Path connections can be unclear, physically challenging, steep, or obstructed by field infrastructure, making access difficult for some users. The project therefore aimed to improve links between coastal and inland landscapes by identifying three connecting routes between the South West Coast Path and the East Devon Way, including opportunities to develop shorter, accessible circular walks suitable for people of all ages and abilities.
What it Achieved
The project produced a comprehensive 73-page feasibility report identifying and assessing three circular walks routes linking the South West Coast Path and the East Devon Way. It includes community consultation feedback, route selection, and detailed opportunity mapping for improving access, interpretation, and nature enhancement, alongside indicative costs to support future delivery.
Outcomes
The project established a framework for action that will deliver multiple long-term benefits. It identified three accessible coastal-to-inland circular walks designed to support nature-based activity, improve physical and mental wellbeing, and build local pride through community engagement and educational opportunities.
It also sets out habitat enhancement measures such as hedgerows, wildflower meadows, nesting boxes, and ecological corridors, alongside targeted support for priority species like the Wood White and Brown Hairstreak butterflies.
In addition, the approach strengthens landscape resilience by improving habitat connectivity and creating natural buffers to help communities adapt to future coastal change.
Key Learnings
The project demonstrated that the model is replicable in other regions with similar inland-to-coastal landscapes, helping to better connect popular coastlines with their rural hinterlands via circular walks.
It showed that projects like this, combining inclusive access planning with Local Nature Recovery targets can deliver coherent, high-impact networks that support both nature recovery and improved access for people.
Partners
Contribution to Coastal Wildbelt
- Demonstrates and enables more and different people to connect with nature at the coast
- Supports a thriving nature-rich coastline for everyone
- Enables people to have an active role in nature’s recovery
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