Three-quarters of UK adults can’t read a map – here’s how to get better

A study by Ordnance Survey to coincide with National Map Reading Week paints a sorry picture of our navigation skills. But there are ways to improve …

Just how far is it to the pub? Three-quarters of UK adults are in danger of never finding out, according to a poll commissioned by Ordnance Survey to mark National Map Reading Week (11-17 July). It found that 77% of respondents couldn’t recognise the most basic OS map symbols, such as viewpoints and pubs. (The latter is marked with a classic pint “jug” glass with handle, so could the ignorance be down to the switch to straight beer glasses?)

But despite the popularity of walking – and the huge boost it saw during and after lockdowns – it seems most of us are still woefully bad at using a map to guide us.