Tough Girl Podcast Debbie North - Wheelchair user, “Making the inaccessible accessible” - Passionate about creating a countryside for all.
Dec 11, 2021
45:05
Since becoming a wheelchair user Debbie has campaigned tirelessly to break down barriers in all aspects of promoting accessibility for all. Debbie lives on a sheep farm in Cumbria, on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. She is a member of the Local Access Forum for the YDNP and chair of the Access For All group. She is a volunteer for the National Park with the responsibility of auditing the ‘Miles Without Stile’ routes. For the past 6 years Debbie has been the expert in inclusion and diversity for The Outdoor Guide, a free online resource dedicated to enjoying the outdoors. Co-founded and fronted by television personality Julia Bradbury. Debbie is a Get Outside Champion with Ordnance Survey. In 2020 she was nominated for 'Outdoor Personality of the Year' by TGO magazine readers. Debbie is a presenter, motivational speaker, writer and consultant and is able to deliver tailor made training and presentations. She is a regular contributor for the BBC Countryfile Magazine Although Debbie specialises in walks for wheelchair users, she is able to create multi- sensory walks for people with visual and hearing impairment. Her motto is “Making the inaccessible accessible” New episodes of the Tough Girl Podcast go live every Tuesday at 7am UK time - Hit the subscribe button so you don’t miss out. The Tough Girl Podcast is sponsorship and ad free thanks to the monthly financial support of patrons. Support the mission to increase the amount of female role models in the media. Visit www.patreon.com/toughgirlpodcast and subscribe - super quick and easy to do and it makes a massive difference. Thank you. Show notes
- Living on a sheep farm in Cumbria
- Being a wheelchair user since 2011
- De-stressing from school life
- Spending time in the hills
- Starting to look at ways she could get back outside
- Struggling to access the countryside
- Working with Terrain Hopper
- Losing her husband Andy to cancer
- Setting up the charity “Access the Dales”
- The Outdoor Guide
- Spending time in the open and growing up in Sheffield
- Meeting Andy while teaching at the same school
- Doing the coast to coast walk not really knowing each other…
- Deciding to make some changes
- Putting pen to paper
- Getting back outside again and going on her first walk in a wheelchair
- Facing challenges out in nature
- Why accessibility should be the starting point of any new project
- Magical moments of spending time in the outdoors
- Getting a new dog
- Having her first Scottish solo holiday
- Batteries on wheelchairs
- Going downhill
- New books
- Launching the charity and the book in April 2022
- Final words of advice
- Why we all have our own Everest