Frequently asked questions
Where are the National Parks in the UK?
When were the National Parks designated?
Who looks after the National Parks?
Who owns the National Parks land?
How can you protect a National Park if people live it in?
How can you encourage lots of visitors to National Parks and protect the landscape?
What's the biggest, most populated, most visited National Park?
What is a National Park?
National Parks are beautiful, spectacular and often dramatic expanses of countryside. In the UK people live and work in the National Parks and the farms, villages and towns are protected along with the landscape and wildlife. They are also areas where everyone can go to enjoy the outdoors.
In 1945, before any National Parks had been created in the UK, John Dower wrote a report to the government, describing what National Parks should do. He said that for 'the Nation's benefit' the government should make sure;
- the characteristic landscape beauty is strictly preserved;
- access and facilities for open-air enjoyment are amply provided;
- wildlife and buildings and places of architectural and historic interest are suitably protected;
- established farming use is effectively maintained.
See the whole history of National Park in our timeline
Where are the National Parks in the UK?
The UK has 14 National Parks.
- There are nine in England - Dartmoor, Exmoor, the Lake District, the New Forest, Northumberland, North York Moors, the Peak District, the Yorkshire Dales and the Broads which has equivalent status to a National Park;
- two in Scotland - Cairngorms and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs;
- and three in Wales – the Brecon Beacons, Pembrokeshire Coast and Snowdonia.
The South Downs, on England’s southern coast, is proposed as a National Park and its designation is currently under review.
Download a big map showing all 14 National Parks.
When were the National Parks designated?
1951 - Peak District, Lake District, Snowdonia and Dartmoor
1952 - Pembrokeshire Coast and North York Moors
1954 - Yorkshire Dales and Exmoor
1956 - Northumberland
1957 - Brecon Beacons
1989 - The Broads given equivalent status to a National Park
2002 - Loch Lomond & The Trossachs
2003 - Cairngorms
2005 - New Forest
Who looks after the National Parks?
Each National Park has an organisation called a National Park Authority to help look after it. By law, each National Park Authority has to:
- conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage; and
- promote opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of National Parks by the public; and
- seek to foster the economic and social well-being of local communities.
The Broads Authority also has an extra duty to protect the interests of navigation, and the two Scottish National Parks also have objectives to promote the sustainable use of natural resources, the sustainable economic and social development of local communities.
Find out more about us and how we are run, and find out how we are looking after the National Parks.
Who owns the National Parks land?
The National Parks are mostly private land, just like everywhere else in the country. Farmers, private landowners, the forestry commission and charities like the National Trust are some of the landowners, along with the thousands of people who live in the villages and towns. National Park Authorities sometimes own some bits of land, but we work with all the landowners in the National Parks to help protect the landscape.
How can you protect a National Park if people live it in?
The people that live in National Parks play an important part in protecting the landscape. Lots of habitats that look like wild countryside - moorlands, fells and mountains, meadows, woods and wetlands - were created by people using the land in different ways.
Grazing animals, harvesting wood, digging for peat, shooting gamebirds, thatching houses with reeds, growing hay and other types of farming all help to create habitats and wildlife in National Parks. Find out how we work with local communities to protect National Parks in our living in section.
How can you encourage lots of visitors to National Parks and protect the landscape?
Managing a National Park is a balancing act between conservation and the economy. People who live and work in National Parks need the support of the one hundred million visits that take place each year. If each of these visitors uses local services and buys local produce during their visit, it helps local businesses survive in a sustainable way.
We also try to give visitors a better understanding of National Parks and hope that will enjoy their visit and want to protect the National Parks for the future.
