Learn about the National Park

The New Forest National Park is one of 15 national parks in the UK.  It is the first to be created in England for nearly 50 years and is smallest of all the national parks. The New Forest became a national park in March 2005 and the National Park Authority took on its full duties in April 2006. National park status is the highest level of countryside designation and ensures the strongest permanent protection for the future against the increasing development pressures of the south-east such as housing and transport.

The New Forest National Park is mostly in south-west Hampshire. It lies between Southampton Water in the east and the Avon Valley in the west and stretches from the edge of the Wiltshire chalk downs in the north to the Solent coast in the south.

The traditional image of the New Forest is of a mosaic of ancient and ornamental woodland and open heathland, but the boundaries of the National Park extend further to encompass 26 miles of coastline including salt marsh, lagoons and mudflats. The landscape is one of historical management with over two thirds of the National Park covered by the ‘Perambulation’ – the area in which commoners’ rights apply and their animals can roam freely.

Today the National Park is popular as an area for recreation, relaxation and tourism as well as maintaining a cultural heritage and way of life for the 34,000 people who live within its boundary.

Factsheets

Factsheet 1 - Key facts and figures (1MB)

Factsheet 2 - Designation and role of the National Park Authority (597 KB)

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