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The '''National Parks''' [http://www.anpa.gov.uk/] (Welsh: ''Parciau Cenedlaethol'') of the United Kingdom are to be found primarily in England and Wales; two recent additions exist in Scotland. There are as yet no National Parks in Northern Ireland.

Slightly less strict designations also exist, the '''Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty''' in England and Wales, and the '''National Scenic Area''' in Scotland.

Understand

Each park is operated by its own National Park Authority, with two "statutory purposes":

  • to conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the area, and
  • to promote opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the park's special qualities by the public.
  • Despite the name, National Parks in the UK are quite different from those in many other countries, where National Parks are owned and managed by the government as a protected community resource, and permanent human communities are not a part of the landscape. In the UK, National Parks can include substantial towns and villages, and land uses such as farming and forestry which are often integral parts of the landscape. Land within a National Park remains largely in private ownership, and so land access is usually subject to the same restrictions as elsewhere in the country.

    National Parks

    England

    The majority of England's National Parks are to be found in the North, reflecting the fact that most wilderness areas are to be found in the mountainous areas of the Pennines and surrounding areas.

  • The Broads
  • Dartmoor
  • Exmoor
  • Lake District National Park
  • New Forest - England's newest National Park, designated on 1 March 2005
  • Northumberland
  • Peak District
  • Yorkshire Dales
  • Yorkshire Moors
  • NB: The South Downs has been designated as an area awaiting designation as a future National Park.

    Wales

  • Brecon Beacons (Welsh: ''Bannau Brycheiniog'')
  • Pembrokeshire Coast (Welsh: ''Arfordir Penfro'')
  • Snowdonia (Welsh: ''Eryri'')
  • Scotland

  • Loch Lomond and The Trossachs
  • the Cairngorms
  • Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty

    '''Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty''' in the United Kingdom are currently 41 defined areas in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, designated originally by the Countryside Agency, on behalf of the government. The equivalent in Scotland is the National Scenic Area. Natural England[http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/] was set up in 2006 to succeed the Countryside Agency in England, and is a government body responsible for the protection and improvement of the natural environment in England.

    {| ! colspan=2 | England

  • Arnside and Silverdale
  • Blackdown Hills
  • Cannock Chase
  • Chichester Harbour
  • Chilterns
  • Cornwall
  • Cotswolds
  • Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs
  • Dedham Vale
  • Dorset
  • East Devon
  • East Hampshire
  • Forest of Bowland
  • High Weald of which Ashdown Forest is part of
  • Howardian Hills
  • Isle of Wight
  • Isles of Scilly
  • Kent Downs
  • Lincolnshire Wolds
  • Malvern Hills
  • Mendip Hills
  • Nidderdale
  • Norfolk Coast
  • North Devon
  • North Pennines
  • Northumberland Coast
  • North Wessex Downs
  • Quantock Hills
  • Shropshire Hills
  • Solway Coast
  • South Devon
  • South Hampshire Coast
  • Suffolk Coast and Heaths
  • Surrey Hills
  • South Downs
  • Tamar Valley
  • Wye Valley
  • ! colspan=2 | Wales
  • Anglesey
  • Clwydian Range
  • Gower
  • Lleyn
  • Wye Valley
  • ! colspan=2 | Northern Ireland
  • Antrim Coast and Glens
  • Causeway Coast
  • Lagan Valley
  • Lecale Coast
  • Mourne
  • Binevenagh
  • Ring of Gullion
  • Sperrin
  • Strangford Lough
  • National Scenic Areas

    '''National Scenic Area''' (NSA)[http://www.snh.org.uk/scripts-snh/ab-pa03.asp] is a national landscape designation applied in Scotland. Currently there are 40 designated NSA's. They are considered of national importance based on their outstanding scenic landscapes. National Scenic area is equivalent to the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty designation which is used in the other countries of the UK. Since 2003, the superior National Park designation has been introduced. There are currently 2 National Parks in Scotland.

    Aberdeenshire

  • Deeside and Lochnagar
  • Argyll and Bute

    {|
  • Jura
  • Knapdale
  • Kyles of Bute
  • Loch Lomond - now part of a National Park along with The Trossachs.
  • Loch na Keal, Isle of Mull
  • Lynn of Lorn
  • Scarba, Lunga and the Garvellachs
  • Dumfries and Galloway

    {|
  • East Stewartry Coast
  • Fleet Valley
  • Nith Estuary
  • Highland

    {|
  • Assynt - Coigach
  • Ben Nevis and Glen Coe
  • Dornoch Firth
  • Glen Affric
  • Glen Strathfarrar
  • Kintail
  • Knoydart
  • Kyle of Tongue
  • Loch Shiel
  • Morar, Moidart and Ardnamurchan
  • North West Sutherland
  • The Cairngorm Mountains - now a National Park
  • The Cuillin Hills
  • The Small Isles
  • Trotternish
  • Wester Ross
  • North Ayrshire

  • North Arran
  • Orkney Islands

  • Hoy and West Mainland
  • Perthshire and Kinross

    {|
  • Loch Rannoch and Glen Lyon
  • Loch Tummel
  • River Earn (Comrie to St. Fillans)
  • River Tay (Dunkeld)
  • Shetland Isles

  • Shetland
  • Stirling

  • The Trossachs - now part of a National Park along with Loch Lomond.
  • Borders

    {|
  • Eildon and Leaderfoot
  • Upper Tweeddale
  • Western Isles

    {|
  • South Lewis, Harris and North Uist
  • South Uist Machair
  • St Kilda