Darnall’s Ordnance Survey champion Yvonne urging people to get into great outdoors

A plan by Ordnance Survey to get people healthy and outdoors more often has a new champion after it recruited fighting fit Darnall adventurer Yvonne Witter.
Yvonne Witter from Darnall in Sheffield urging people to get outdoorsYvonne Witter from Darnall in Sheffield urging people to get outdoors
Yvonne Witter from Darnall in Sheffield urging people to get outdoors

Yvonne is joining OS’s GetOutside campaign, which is designed to tackle rising inactivity in Great Britain by helping more people discover the joy of the outdoors and the physical and mental health benefits that brings.

She was chosen by OS to become a GetOutside champion for her work as a community mentor for Peak District Mosaic, a collective made up of individuals from BME (black and minority ethnic) communities around the Peak District National Park.

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Yvonne met her 60 fellow OS GetOutside champions at an event in Cheshire where they were joined by endurance adventurer Sean Conway and paralympian Mel Nicholls. The champions, chosen for their ability to communicate their love for being outside, include journalists, bloggers and authors who all write about their adventures in Britain.

Yvonne, who this year plans to lead group walks, cycling trips and various other activities to get more people to access and enjoy the outdoors, among other challenges, said: “I am passionate about encouraging others to get outside. I am a natural motivator and was very honoured to be selected as one of the GetOutside Champion.”

She added: “It means a great lot to me to be able to continue my work in the countryside to motivate others and given this opportunity to do even more, especially reaching out to those who feel that the countryside is not for them or do not know where to go and what to do to.  The outdoors is like a second home to me, a place to de-stress, enjoy nature, learning new things and being adventurous while challenging myself.  The great outdoors can be a haven for others to recharge, meet new friends and be at peace with nature.”

OS has selected its Champions to promote the many benefits of an active outdoor lifestyle. Nick Giles, Ordnance Survey, said: “The GetOutside initiative is core to OS’s aims to help more people to GetOutside more often, it is about inspiring adventures, enabling experiences and helping make memories. It’s already encouraging people to re-engage with the outdoors and showing that it is enjoyable, accessible and safe for all ages and abilities.”

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OS Champion, Ben Fogle, said: “There are some truly remarkable and inspirational people in this group, and it is an honour and delight to be joining them for what I think is an important campaign, making the outdoors enjoyable, accessible and safe.”

The champions have been given exclusive access to OS products before anyone else and will take part in product trials. Also included is full access to OS’s latest digital mapping product OS Maps, which includes all OS Landranger and OS Explorer maps, and an exclusive #GetOutside champions clothing bundle.

Yvonne added: “I have been the Chairperson for Peak District Mosaic since 2016. My involvement with Mosaic started in 2008 when I signed up as a Champion.  I have been very proactive in learning the skills and increasing my knowledge of the countryside to be able to introduce others to the Peak District National Park.”