Donate-a-Gate

Dozens of gates have been donated and fitted in response to our Donate-a-Gate scheme and our Path Maintenance Volunteers (PMV) are busy literally fitting them in to their full schedule.

The response to the scheme has been much greater than we expected and it takes time for Bucks CC Rights of Way Officers, in addition to their other responsibilities, to identify locations and to obtain the agreement of the landowner. Whilst it would be desirable to place each gate donated in the order in which it was received, for practical reasons this cannot be.

Some rumination
Occasionally we are told that wooden gates are more appealing than metal as they blend in better. This can be the case but metal gates quickly lose their ‘new’ appearance as they weather and are installed for very practical reasons. Whilst both materials need to provide a barrier for livestock, some horses are known to have an appetite for chewing wood and metal gates are stronger, more durable and are lower – which make them better able to withstand the pressure of cattle and horses rubbing against them.

Arguably though, perhaps the most important consideration should be to allow people, who have difficulty using stiles for whatever reason, to have access to more stile-free walks throughout the Chilterns.

The Chiltern Society would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has donated a gate and to ask those of you who have agreed to donate gates, to please be patient – you haven’t been forgotten…

If you wish to donate a gate, navigate to: 'Get involved' > 'Activity groups' > 'Donate a Gate'.

If you can help the PMV in any way, particularly if you are in the north Chilterns area, please navigate to: 'Get involved' > 'Activity groups' > 'Path maintenance'.