How digital transformation is improving work within the National Park’s countryside management team was demonstrated last week.

Members of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority’s operational review committee were shown how digital working, using specialist software, had made the coordination of warden work easier and more efficient.

Operations manager Steven Jones updated the committee on September 23 on the digital transformation work that has been ongoing since 2018 using Arc Online software to digitise work flows including inspections, planning and scheduling as well as how it can inform future work.

Mr. Jones outlined how the software allowed wardens to manage work with a mobile app for Rights of Way and bridge inspections, fault reporting, workforce manager, Ash dieback recorder, pollinator projects, dashboards and data generated automatically to inform planning, as well as data analysis and insights.

Examples of the benefits the committee heard were that 72 per cent of the park’s footpaths were inspected in the first year, which was much faster than usual, and path cutting had taken place on more than 1,000 footpaths.

“Some of the insights and information we’ve not had before, and it shows patterns we might not have known about digging around in paper,” said Mr. Jones.

He referred to signs and way markings needing repair in a particular area and the development of a specialised pollinator app by one warden to make improvements on the paths.

“I’m very impressed with the work that’s gone on here, clearly we have been trail blazing,” said committee member Dr Madeleine Havard.