People in Wiltshire have worse access to green spaces than most people in the South West, new figures suggest.

The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) estimates 40 per cent of households in Wiltshire do not have an accessible green space of two hectares or larger within one kilometre of their house.

In the South West, 30 per cent of all households do not have access to green outdoor spaces, but across England, 78 per cent of households have a green space of at least two hectares within a kilometre.

The Health Foundation said the government must prioritise providing green space in their plans to build more homes and said that those living in the most deprived neighbourhoods are four times more likely to live in areas with the least access to green spaces.

Gwen Nightingale, assistant director of the Healthy Lives team at the Health Foundation, said: “For new homes and neighbourhoods, the government must prioritise providing access to green space within their pledge to create new towns and build 1.5 million new homes.”

Mike Childs, head of policy at Friends of the Earth, said: "While it is good news that the majority of people have reasonable access to green space, this still means at least one in five people don't, and previous research has shown that this 20% of the population is disproportionately made up by people of colour.

“Since Covid there has been a greater awareness of the importance of green spaces for both physical and mental health, as well as the critical role they play in cooling urban heat.

"The goal must be to ensure everyone has access to green space, nature and the benefits they bring.”

The data shows that in Wiltshire, 13 per cent of households meet the doorstep standard, meaning they have an accessible green space of at least 0.5 hectares within 200 metres.

Meanwhile, eight per cent meet the local standard where a green space of at least two hectares is within a five minute walk from their home and 36 per cent meet the neighbourhood standard, with a green space of at least 10 hectares within one kilometre or a 15 minute walk from home.

A Defra spokesperson said the government plans to increase access to nature by creating nine new national river walks and planting three new national forests, but a community right to buy will “empower” local communities to create parks and green spaces.