UK National Parks | A Short History
February 21, 2025The end of 2024 marked the 75th anniversary of national parks in the UK. The world now is very different to the world in 1949, and yet the extraordinary landscapes, diverse wildlife and rich history of our national parks remain just as important now as they did then. Learning about the history of how these national parks developed helps us to not only appreciate them – and might perhaps inspire a trip to one or two this year – but also to consider how we, as individuals, impact our national parks. What role might you play in shaping the next 75 years of national parks in the UK? Whether that is visiting a new national park, volunteering to help plant trees or restore paths, or campaigning for the designation of national marine parks, everyone and anyone can do something to help.
What is a national park?
In the UK, a national park is a protected landscape that has been designated because of its natural, scientific and/or historical significance. At the time of writing, there are 10 national parks in England, 3 in Wales and 2 in Scotland. There are none in Northern Ireland, although there are several proposals for additional national parks, and it is likely that the numbers could increase soon.
The exact definition of a ‘national park’ is up for debate, since this definition varies globally. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) state that ‘a national park is a relatively large area 1) where one or several ecosystems are not materially altered by human exportation and occupation… and 2) where the highest competent authority of the country has taken steps to prevent or to eliminate as soon as possible exploitation or occupation in the whole area’. This suggests that a national park is defined by the health and richness of its ecosystems, alongside a lack of human impact. However, National Parks UK defines national parks as areas of ‘stunning natural beauty, beautiful wildlife and fascinating cultural heritage.’ In this sense, national parks in the UK are defined by a richness of both natural and cultural (i.e. human) landscapes.
In 1949, the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act related the provision of national parks to the ‘establishment and maintenance of nature reserves’, the ‘creation, maintenance and improvement of public paths’, ‘securing access to open country’, and ‘preserving and enhancing natural beauty’. Our national parks are designed to serve a myriad of purposes benefitting nature and people.
How did the national parks come to be?
The concept of a ‘national park’, as we know it today, developed at the end of the 19th century. In 1872, Yellowstone in the United States became the world’s first national park. This inspired other countries, and a wide movement of national park creation spread across the globe in subsequent decades.
National parks are often viewed as a western concept, and many articles suggest that their history begins in the United States in 1872. However, the first site to become protected because of its natural beauty was actually the area around Mount Bogd Khan Uul in Mongolia. The mountain has been protected as a sacred mountain since at least the 12th century, declared a protected site by the Qing dynasty in 1783.
The development of national parks in the UK came much later, and is intrinsically linked with the campaign for access rights to the countryside. The growth of walking, rambling and hiking in the 19th and early 20th centuries led to greater numbers of people accessing and appreciating the countryside. However, access to the outdoors became increasingly limited with the continued development of the Enclosure Movement. This was where the government and aristocracy enclosed agricultural land that had previously been common land, often blocking off access to fields as part of the process. The continued efforts of wealthy landowners to prevent people from accessing the countryside led to the Winter Hill mass trespass of 1896 and the Kinder Scout mass trespass of 1932.
Four years after the Kinder Scout mass trespass, the Standing Committee on National Parks was formed to campaign for the creation of national parks in the United Kingdom. This later transformed into the Campaign for National Parks, a charity which continues to campaign for the protection and creation of national parks today.
In 1945, the post-war Labour government published a white paper on national parks by John Dower, who was the secretary for the Standing Committee on National Parks. Dower wrote the report during the Second World War, when he returned home to Kirkby Malham (now in the Yorkshire Dales National Park) after contracting tuberculosis. Unfortunately, Dower died of tuberculosis in 1947, only two years after his report was published and two years too early to see the creation of national parks.
Dower’s report laid the foundations for a second report, produced in 1947 by a committee chaired by Arthur Hobhouse, which recommended 12 national parks in addition to 34 conservation areas. The Hobhouse committee set up two further committees to examine related topics that they felt needed special attention: the Wildlife Conservation Special Committee, and the Footpaths and Access Special Committee.
In 1949, the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act was passed. Following this, 10 of the national parks recommended in the Hobhouse report were designated over the course of the 1950s. The Peak District National Park became the UK’s first national park in 1951, supported by the campaign work of Ethel Haythornthwaite who sat on the Hobhouse committee. However, the final national park recommended in the Hobhouse report – the South Downs – wasn’t designated until 2010. The noughties also saw the designation of the New Forest national park, and two national parks in Scotland – the Cairngorms, and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs.
The development of national parks in Scotland occurred a little differently to those in England and Wales. In 1931, a commission led by Christopher Addison proposed a national park in the Cairngorms, and in 1945 a committee chaired by Sir Douglas Ramsay suggested five national parks across Scotland. Only two of these were designated under the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000, by the devolved Scottish Parliament in 1999.
National Parks timeline
1783: The area around Bogd Khan mountain is declared a protected site by the Mongolian government.
1872: Yellowstone National Park is designated in the United States.
18th & 19th Century: Enclosure Movement increasingly limits access to the countryside in the UK.
1896: Winter Hill mass trespass.
1931: The Addison commission proposes a national park in the Cairngorms, Scotland.
1932: Kinder Scout mass trespass.
1945: The report by John Dower is published.
1947: The report by the Hobhouse committee is published.
1949: The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act is passed.
1951: The Peak District, Lake District, Snowdonia (Eryri) and Dartmoor national parks are designated.
1952: Pembrokeshire Coast and the North York Moors are designated as national parks.
1954: The Yorkshire Dales and Exmoor are designated as national parks.
1956: Northumberland is designated as a national park.
1957: The Brecon Beacons (Bannau Brycheiniog) is designated as a national park.
1989: The Broads is given national park status.
2000: National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000.
2002: Loch Lomond & the Trossachs National Park is designated.
2003: The Cairngorms National Park is designated.
2005: The New Forest National Park is designated.
2010: The South Downs National Park is designated.
2024: Galloway is proposed as a new national park for Scotland, and the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley is proposed as a new national park for Wales.
Why are National Parks important?
National Parks cover around 10% of England and Wales – a statistic that may rise in the future. They are important for a wide number of reasons, including:
- Protecting wildlife - National parks have special planning rules, which reduce harm to wildlife that could occur because of urban expansion. They work with farmers and landowners to promote sustainable practices, and with conservation organisations to restore important habitats such as peatlands and hay meadows.
- Protecting landscapes - National parks protect unique landscapes with significant geology and natural history. For example, the Yorkshire Dales National Park contains over 30% of England’s limestone pavement, and Eryri National Park contains the highest mountain in Wales.
- Protecting cultural heritage - Many national parks have distinct and unique cultural heritage, such as Hadrian’s Wall in Northumberland National Park. It’s important that we protect monuments like this for future generations to enjoy.
- Supporting rural communities - National parks support many rural communities, which have seen declining populations since the beginning of the industrial revolution. By highlighting the beauty and importance of these landscapes, national parks boost tourism, provide jobs and significantly contribute to the local economy.
- Encouraging people to engage with nature - National parks encourage people to engage with nature, by drawing attention to the great diversity of landscapes across the UK. National park authorities help to maintain paths, provide visitor centres and provide educational visits for school groups, giving visitors the opportunity to experience the outdoors.
How are national parks changing?
National Parks in the UK are changing all the time. Existing parks are expanding, new parks are being designated and ideas about how they should be defined and managed are evolving. For example, several new national parks have been suggested in the last few years, and it is likely that some of these will come to fruition in the recent future.
Last year, in 2024, it was announced that Galloway (in south-west Scotland) was the preferred location for Scotland’s third national park. Similarly, the Welsh Government has proposed a new national park in north-east Wales in the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley, which is currently a National Landscape. In addition to these, there are many suggestions for further national parks across the UK – no doubt spurred by a rising awareness of the climate and nature crises, alongside a shared responsibility to protect the natural environment.
The ideology of national parks is also changing. Charities such as the Blue Marine Foundation and Campaign for National Parks are campaigning for the creation of National Marine Parks. Despite being an island nation, many people are disconnected from the ocean. The wildlife, geology and cultural heritage of our coastal areas are under extreme threat from things like climate change, erosion and pollution. The sea needs our protection now more than ever. Although we are yet to see a legally designated National Marine Park, Plymouth City Council declared Plymouth Sound as the first National Marine Park in 2019. The Park now has a ranger service supporting educational events and a team of volunteers helping with habitat restoration and beach clean-ups. This functions similarly to existing national parks, where rangers and volunteers support conservation initiatives such as path repair, coastal tree planting and invasive species removal. It is surely only a matter of time until the government recognises the need to protect our seas, and a whole new group of national parks develop. Suggested areas include Morecambe Bay, the Isles of Scilly and the Argyll Coast and Islands.
Threats to national parks
- Climate change - Many of the impacts of climate change, such as rising temperatures and more vicious storms, are disrupting ecosystems, and threatening many of the rare plants and animals in our national parks. For example, purple saxifrage is an arctic-alpine flower that grows on the highest hills in the Yorkshire Dales and Lake District national parks. The flower thrives in cool conditions, and may struggle to survive as average temperatures continue to rise.
- Pollution - Pollution from traffic can reduce air quality, while litter from visitors can be dangerous to animals. One of the most damaging forms of pollution in our national parks at the moment is water pollution. Things like agricultural runoff and sewage can damage our rivers and lakes, as has happened in Windermere in the Lake District National Park.
We are lucky to have such vibrant and diverse national parks in the UK, each with their own unique forms of natural and cultural heritage. Their history is intertwined with the history of access rights and nature conservation – issues that continue to remain relevant today. It has now been 75 years since the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act. As we celebrate all that we have achieved, it is important for us to look to the future, considering the important role national parks will play as we combat the climate and nature crises – as well as what we, as users of them, can do to help protect them.