Lake District National Park's Safer Lakes initiative wins our Park Protector Award

Lake District National Park’s ‘Safer Lakes’ response to the challenges of the global pandemic has seen it win Campaign for National Parks’ top Park Protector Award 2021, sponsored by Ramblers Holidays Charitable Trust.

Nominations were received from 12 out of the 13 National Parks in England and Wales with the top £1,000 prize being awarded to Lake District National Park Authority for its transformative Safer Lakes approach.

Two runner-up prizes of £500 each were awarded to Moors for the Future Partnership for its peatland restoration efforts in Peak District National Park, and to Be Wild Buckfastleigh for connecting the local community with nature and wildlife in Dartmoor National Park throughout the pandemic.

For the first time, the Park Protector Awards included a People's Choice Volunteer of the Year – which returned Rod Gentry as the overall winner for his work in South Downs National Park. 

Rod was chosen by public vote from a shortlist of five volunteers, whose stories we'll be sharing with a new 'Volunteer of the Month' slot in future newsletters. 

Find out more about all the winners here - and look out for a full feature in the next edition of BBC Countryfile Magazine.

Photos: Safer Lakes by Lake District National Park Authority (top) & Rod Gentry by Forestry England (above)

Campaigning for changes to the Environment Bill - for nature and for people

We’ve joined more than 50 environmental organisations in calling for a change to the Environment Bill to strengthen the law by including a legally binding target to reverse the loss of nature in England by 2030.

Nature recovery work is already underway in our National Parks but a clear commitment and more resources could see this important work scaled up.

The delayed Environment Bill is expected to begin progress again through the House of Lords later this year. We want to see several amendments included which would set legally binding targets for nature and for access, with regulations for how the targets will be met.

We've also joined Ramblers, Sustrans, YHA and others in calling for further amendments to the Environment Bill to include provisions that require the setting of long-term, legally binding targets and plans to improve people’s access to nature. Improving access to our National Parks remains one of our key areas of focus.

You can help by signing the 'State of Nature' petition now.
 

Welsh Agriculture Bill consultation response

Campaign for National Parks has submitted its response to the Agriculture (Wales) White Paper. As the majority of land within the National Parks is farmed, the future of support for farmers and land managers will be critical if we are to protect and enhance these internationally recognised areas.

Our consultation response focuses on making the case for landscape protection and enhancement to be supported through new Sustainable Farming Scheme (replacing the Basic Payment Scheme and Glastir). 

It is essential that the protection and enhancement of landscape character is one of the outcomes for which land managers are rewarded, given the importance of landscape, not only in terms of the environment but also the economy and culture of Wales.

You can read our full response here.
 

Climate emergency needs more emphasis in National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)

We believe that proposed changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) do not go far enough to address the seriousness of the climate emergency, and it needs to go further for National Parks.

We've joined a coalition of environmental organisations, including Town and County Planning Association, Centre for Sustainable Energy and CPRE, to push for changes to the NPPF which explicitly set the 2008 Climate Change Act at the centre of the planning system.

Our own consultation response welcomes the inclusion of some greater protection for the settings of designated landscapes, but objects to the proposed removal of the ability of National Park Authorities to restrict permitted development if it threatens the character of an area.

We also welcome a National Model Design Code in principle, but have significant reservations about local planning authorities' lack of resources and specialist design skills. We would like to see design guidance to be strengthened with regard to landscape, climate and rural areas.

You can read our full consultation response here.

70th Anniversary celebrations begin...

This month sees the 70th anniversary of the first National Park in England. Peak District National Park celebrates this milestone date on 17 April with a look back over the past 70 years; it includes a '70 people for 70 years' series, a campaign to raise £70k to fund local projects and a 'Bake District 70' cake-baking contest. Find out more here.

Photo: Kinder Scout by Peak District National Park Authority

On 13 August it's the turn of Lake District National Park, 18 October Snowdonia National Park - Wales' first National Park - and 30 October Dartmoor National Park. Keep an eye on our blog and social media channels on those dates where we'll be celebrating these special occasions.

If you want a handy list of National Park anniversaries, our former trustee Kate Ashbrook has included this as part of a recent blog exploring several issues around National Parks. See here.

Latest blog post...

We marked International Women's Day on 8 March with a blog which celebrated inspirational women from the world of National Parks and looked at where we are today in terms of representation.

Women have played - and continue to play - an integral role in National Parks across the world: as staff, volunteers, campaigners, advocates, ambassadors and leaders. Find out more about some of these women here.