Coillte, Ireland’s state forestry company, worked with Fáilte Ireland, Ireland’s National Tourism Development Authority, and EAK Ireland, to develop Beyond the Trees Avondale in County Wicklow.  The €19m project combines an accessible Treetop Walk and 12 storey Viewing Tower with a state of the art visitor centre, café and visitor facilities including restored walled gardens and a playground.

In creating the Beyond the Trees Avondale experience, Coillte and partners implemented a four-stage strategy to develop the experience as Age Friendly.

Step 1: Engage and Understand

When the plans for the re-development of Avondale Forest Park were in their initial stages, Wicklow County Council’s then Chief Executive Frank Curran proposed to Coillte that it should link with Age Friendly Ireland to ensure the re-development included age friendly considerations. Coillte accepted this suggestion.

Step 2: Plan Strategically

The process included consultation and planning particularly with older people. A consultation took place with Older People Council members in Wicklow, from which there was an Age Friendly walkability audit in July 2022 involving members of the community assessing the age friendly features. 13 participants from Wicklow Older People’s Council, Disability Federation of Ireland, the Irish Wheelchair association, Coillte, Age friendly Ireland and Wicklow County Council attended. The group also included a person using a wheelchair, a person with reduced mobility and a carer. Starting from the car park, the audit group moved through the reception area, café, along the treetop walk, up to the viewing tower and back down to reception at the visitor center.

Step 3: Act and Implement

Some of the actions and implementations that Coillte and EAK Ireland have made are the following: Installation of 22 age friendly car parking spaces and 25 disabled parking bays, accessible toilet facilities, accessible trails including a multi access route that is suitable for wheelchair users, additional seating along the Treetop Walk and Viewing Tower, concessions on ticket prices for 65+ age group and other age friendly aspects to improve the experience.

Step 4: Evaluate and Monitor Progress

The fourth and final stage is to evaluate and monitor the initiative. Wicklow Age Friendly Programme continues to engage with its Older People’s Council, Coillte, EAK Ireland and other stakeholders such as Disability Federation Ireland and the Irish Wheelchair Association to ensure that older people have a role in evaluating and monitoring the further development of the Beyond the Trees Avondale experience.

Recently at Avondale House, the reimagined historic home of Charles Stewart Parnell also located on the site, a walkability audit was undertaken with a view to improving the Age Friendliness of the House itself for visitor groups and guided tours.

‘Developing an Age Friendly Tourist Destination’ at

https://agefriendlyireland.ie/category/publications/guidelines-toolkits/