A while back destination managers were trying to target minority ethnic communities who historically tended not to venture into the Great British countryside. It was suggested this might be due to a certain lack of welcome in rural parts or maybe little interest in tramping around the sticks.
But on recent visits to two National Trust estates – Lyme Park and Tatton Park – I have seen lots of people of Indian sub-continent origin, mostly in large, multi-generation family groups, taking picnics, playing games and seeming to really enjoy the countryside, albeit a safe and managed version of it.
A barrier seems to have been broken. Well done the National Trust.