ACTION TAKEN IN LIGHT OF CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC.
In light of the serious pandemic currently affecting the entire world the trustees of Forth and Tay Disabled Ramblers have taken the decision to cancel all events including The Annual General Meeting for 2020.
The action was not taken without serious consideration but the trustees would not be acting appropriately by continuing with events which could lead to our members or volunteers falling victim to the disease because of our actions.
Any enquiries in relation to Forth and Tay Disabled Ramblers can still be made using the email contact on the relevant page. Should you require any help please contact us immediately on the numbers to which current members and volunteers have access.
We ask that you all take care of yourselves and indeed each other and hope that we come through the end of this serious situation without any unnecessary losses.
About FTDR
Forth & Tay Disabled Ramblers is a user-led charity, established in August 2001. We are run by a Management Committee of 10 of which 7 are disabled members and 3 volunteers. Our membership is mainly based in the area bounded by the rivers Forth & Tay although we do have members joining recently from Edinburgh, West Lothian and Dundee.
The group hires accessible transport, driven by trained volunteers, to take members to venues. Paths are checked and risk-assessed in advance to ensure access and safety.
Our annual programme includes day rambles to country parks, forests, canal tow paths, seaside promenades, national heritage sites and gardens. On two or three occasions during the rambling year we enjoy a meal at a hostelry near to the ramble. On 5 rambles per year we hire a minibus to transport those members who do not have their own transport. Depending on the location of the ramble there are 4/5 pickup points.
The rambles normally take place during the months of April through to October. The reason being that we hope that the selected days in these months may have a chance of providing good weather.
The months of November through to March are therefore a time when part from the Christmas Lunch in December, the members do not meet under the auspices of FTDR. However, in November, 2018, we held a coffee/lunch event at the café at Silver Sands, Aberdour, where a number of members and volunteers met and enjoyed a lovely few hours. Coincidently it was a volunteer’s birthday on the day and so a birthday cake was produced much to her surprise. It is the intention to have such mornings in November, February and March in future years at various venues that are suitable.
Forth & Tay Disabled Ramblers aims to promote health and wellbeing through recreational and social activities by enabling people with disabilities to access the outdoors in a barrier-free environment. Many new friendships have emerged since the group began and these extend beyond the ramble programme.
There are opportunities for personal enrichment and the development of new skills for carers, members and for those wanting to be part of the management committee.
Most of the rambles take part in Fife, although we have used paths in Perth and Kinross, Dundee, Angus, Edinburgh, East Lothian, West Lothian and Midlothian.
