I WAS appalled to read (Stroud News & Journal, June 24) that the National Trust are charging Longfield Hospice for walking on common land.

I walked the 5km walk, so do not know about the longer one, but most of our walk was on minor public roads.

Do the National Trust maintain these? Did they create the wonderful views that spurred us on?

Only a relatively short stretch of the walk was over grassland.

I suspect that most walkers, and our sponsors, wanted to support the hospice, not the National Trust.

I know that the National Trust do great work, and our heritage would be immensely poorer without them.

But this walk was supporting a small local charity, not a nation-wide, well endowed one.

If I belonged to the National Trust (which I do not as, the subscription is large, and they make no concessions for the retired) I would resign immediately, and demand my subscription back.

Other walkers and sponsors might consider doing the same, or at least writing to the National Trust to complain. enquiries@nationaltrust.org.uk or locally sw.customerenquiries@nationaltrust.org.uk

Mary Brown

Stroud