WfH accreditation

Accreditation gives participants, prospective partners, funders and health professionals added confidence in your Walking for Health scheme.

Roughly two thirds of all our walk schemes benefit from being accredited. In December 2010 we reached 400 accredited schemes.

Please note that in preparation for the handover of the Walking for Health national centre, Natural England suspended the system for approving new and renewed accreditations in November 2011. The Ramblers, the new host of Walking for Health from April 2012, plans to reintroduce the accreditation system as soon as possible. In the meantime the Ramblers will continue to recognise accreditations made by Natural England even if these have passed their renewal date.

What is an 'Accredited Scheme'?

A Walking for Health accredited scheme has to be able to demonstrate that it meets the following criteria:

• Offers at least 1 health walk per month which is suitable for beginners. By this we mean a flat walk that last less than an hour with no stiles, led by a trained walk leader.
  
  
• Meets WfH best practice guidance, including regular use of the Outdoor Health Questionnaire (OHQ), walk register and risk assessment. The scheme must also hold valid public liability insurance.
  
  
• Collects basic monitoring information by using the Walking for Health database or collecting its own data and supplying it to us quarterly.

Why apply for accreditation?

There are many benefits of becoming an accredited scheme:

• You will receive a WfH accreditation certificate.
• Your scheme will be clearly marked as accredited on our website's WalkFinder.
• You will be recognised as operating to a defined standard by health professionals.
• You will be able to display the accreditation logo on all of your promotional materials.
• Your funders, partners and potential walkers will recognise that you operate health walks to a defined standard.

How to apply for accreditation

Accreditation applications are currently suspended -- please see the update above.