National Park links
The New Forest is the most recent addition to the family of National Parks in the British Isles. There are now nine in England including the Broads which cover 10% of the land area, three in Wales (covering 20% of the land area) and two in Scotland (7.3%). Globally, there are 6,555 protected areas covering one-million square kilometres.
National Parks are large areas of land that are protected by law for the benefit of the nation. They were established by the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act and have two statutory purposes:
- To conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the National Parks
- To promote opportunities for the public understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of the Parks.
Policies and decisions that could affect the National Parks have to take these purposes into consideration. If there is an irreconcilable conflict between the two purposes then the first one takes precedence. This is known as the Sandford Principle.
The Association of National Park Authorities
UK ANPA brings together the 14 National Park Authorities of England, Scotland and Wales to raise their profiles of the National Parks and to promote joint working. Country associations for the English and Welsh National Parks represent the National Park Authorities to English and Welsh governments
The Campaign for National Parks
The Campaign for National Parks (CNP) is the national charity that campaigns to protect and promote National Parks for the benefit and quiet enjoyment of all.
English National Park Authorities Association
ENPAA (the English National Park Authorities Association) exists to promote and further the needs of the nine English National Park Authorities (NPAs).
The Norfolk Broads
Lying in the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk on the east of England, the Broads is Britain's largest nationally protected wetland and covers 117 square miles (303 sq km). Globally, wetlands are among the most threatened of landscapes. The Broads is one of Europe's most popular inland waterways, attracting more than 2-million visitors a year. It was established as a National Park in 1989 and is renowned for its many species of birds.
Dartmoor National Park
Dartmoor was designated a National Park in 1951. Covering an area of 368 square miles (954 sq km), Dartmoor contains the largest and wildest area of open country in the south of England. There are 1,200 ancient monuments on Dartmoor and it has the largest concentration of Bronze Age remains in the country.
Exmoor National Park
Exmoor covers 267 square miles and became a National Park in 1954. Most of it is in Somerset (71%) and the rest is in Devon. The area has a resident population of almost 11,000 people. Exmoor has the largest broadleaved coastal woods in Britain and the highest sea cliffs on the British mainland.
Lake District National Park
The Lake District National Park is the largest of England's National Parks, covering 885 square miles (2,292 sq. km), and was established in 1951. It has only one official lake, Bassenthwaite; all the others are ‘meres’ or waters. The village of Seathwaite is the wettest inhabited place in England with an annual rainfall of 3,552mm.
Northumberland National Park
Spread over the hills and valleys at the very top of England, Northumberland National Park was designated in 1956. It stretches from Hadrian’s Wall in the south, through the rolling valleys of the Tyne and Rede to the hills of The Cheviots on the Scottish Border. Fewer than 2,000 people live there, making it the least populated National Park in Britain. It is officially the most tranquil place in the United Kingdom.
North York Moors National Park
The North York Moors National Park is one of the most stunning landscapes in Britain. Miles of heather, towering sea cliffs, secluded beaches and grassy dales give it a character all of its own. It was awarded National Park status in 1952. Most of its 554 square miles are still in private ownership. The 1,400 mile (almost 2,300km) network of footpaths and bridleways gives access to much of the area, and now over 90 square miles of open moorland can also be explored on foot as it is open access land.
Peak District National Park
The Peak District was Britain's first National Park, established in April 1951. Around 38,000 people live in the Park, which covers 555 sq. miles (1,438 sq. km). Limestone, shale and gritstone form the foundations of a dramatic landscape that has been shaped by people over thousands of years.
Yorkshire Dales National Park
This is a large area of hill country which straddles the Pennines in the north of England. The Park covers 685 sq. miles (1,762 sq.km) and rises to over 700 metres in the Three Peaks. Rivers have cut deep valleys (dales) of which there are over 20 named examples, each distinctive in character and atmosphere. The area was awarded National Park status in 1954 and is home to a wide range of species, many of which are rare or scarce nationally.
Scotland
Cairngorms National Park
The Cairngorms is Britain’s largest National Park, covering 1,467 square miles (38,000 sq.km). It has the largest area of arctic mountain landscape in the British Isles and includes four of Scotland’s five highest mountains. It is home to 25% of Britain’s threatened birds, animals and plants and was established as a National Park in 2003. The forests contain remnants of the original Caledonian pine forest.
Loch Lomond and The Trossachs
Over 70% of Scotland’s population live less than an hour away from this National Park, which was established in 2002 and covers 720 square miles (1,865 sq.km) of some of the finest scenery in Scotland. There are 22 large lochs and 20 Munros (mountains above 3,000ft) in the Park; the highest is Ben More at 1,174m.
Wales
Brecon Beacons National Park
The Brecon Beacons National Park covers an area of 520 square miles (1,347 sq.km) and was established in 1957. It is situated in mid-Wales and contains some of the most spectacular mountain ranges in southern Britain. It is the only Park in the UK to be awarded the prestigious European Geopark Network status.
Pembrokeshire Coast National Park
This is Britain's only truly coastal National Park: a spectacular landscape of rugged cliffs, sandy beaches, wooded estuaries and wild inland hills. It covers an area of 240 square miles (620sq.km) and has 258 miles of coastline. It was awarded national park status in 1952 and includes 75 Sites of Special Scientific Interest and six national nature reserves.
Snowdonia National Park
This covers 823 square miles (2,132 sq.km) and takes its name from Snowdon, which at 3,560 feet (1,085m) is the highest peak in Wales and England. The Welsh name for the national park is Eryri (The Highland): the nine mountain ranges cover approximately 52% of the Park and include many peaks that are over 3000 feet (915m).
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