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We care for the Chilterns
We are on a mission:
To conserve and enhance the natural beauty and heritage of the landscape, encouraging everyone to care for and enjoy the Chilterns.
Our Goals are to Celebrate, Campaign, Conserve:
Celebrating the Chilterns – helping people connect with, and therefore protect, the natural environment and cultural heritage of the Chilterns; encouraging more people to join in the diverse range of activities they can enjoy in the area.
Campaigning – being the voice for everyone concerned about the long-term sustainability of the natural and built environment in the Chilterns, using our expertise and partnership to make a difference on a national level.
Conserving and enhancing – giving everyone, no matter where they live or their background, the opportunity to be involved in activities that sustain and enhance the unique beauty and character of the Chilterns.
About us
For almost 60 years, the Chiltern Society has been there to help people improve their part of the Chilterns. With our volunteers, members, and partners, we are tackling some of the most serious threats to the countryside – from climate change, to overbearing development and disappearing green spaces and wildlife – to care for this unique landscape.
The people of the Chilterns are at the heart of our work. Through partnerships with national and local stakeholders, we enable individuals and communities to make a difference on their own doorsteps, and through this, take positive action for the Chiltern’s environment. We:
- maintain and restore the 2,200 miles of paths and bridleways that crisscross the Chilterns
- are on the ground in the area’s green and blue places managing woodland, clearing streams, and creating homes for wildlife
- fight the worst excesses of building and infrastructure projects and champion the best of sustainable development
- promote the heritage of the Chilterns through our annual Heritage Festival, and offer hundreds of walks, cycle rides and events throughout the year.
How we work
As a charity, without the generosity of our supporters we wouldn’t be able to continue our work caring for the local landscape. The Chilterns is a special place, and together we can keep it that way.
Find out more about our charitable objectives, mission and values, in our 2022‑2027 Business Plan.
The link above will download a PDF.
Click/tap image to enlarge.
The Chilterns
The Chilterns, located north west of London, covers 650 square miles and is defined by its long line of iconic rolling hills stretching from Hitchin in north Hertfordshire to Goring-on-Thames in south Oxfordshire. Almost half of the Chilterns is an officially designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The countryside is renowned for its sweeping chalk grasslands and wild flowers, its magnificent beechwoods, sparkling chalk streams, deeply wooded valleys and quiet lanes perfect for walkers.
Visitors can enjoy swathes of bluebells in spring or the autumn woodland colour. There is an abundance of wildlife, with red kites wheeling overhead in many areas, thousands of miles of footpaths and several nature reserves to visit.
Click/tap map to enlarge.
How you can help
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