National Parks

As well as being the local CPRE branch, we also fulfil an important role on behalf of the Campaign for National Parks (CNP). We represent CNP in dealings with the Peak District National Park Authority, and we do this as ‘Friends of the Peak District’.

National Parks are some of the most awe inspiring wild spaces the UK has to offer. Covering 10% of the total land area of England and Wales and with over 100 million visitors every year, it’s easy to see why these places have such a lasting impact on visitors and those who call them home.

Every National Park is different, together they are a vibrant tapestry of unique landscapes, species, heritage and cultures that display the very best of the UK. Our Parks are a great source of inspiration, influencing generations of artists, storytellers, campaigners and conservationists.

In our capacity of Campaign For National Parks we represent

After years of campaigning we helped ensure the 1949 the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act was passed into law, enabling the creation of the first National Parks as well as enshrining enshrining everyone’s ability to access nature. National Parks are the symbol of access for everyone to open countryside whilst preserving and enhancing natural beauty; founded on the understanding that connection with nature is essential to the health of people, society and the planet.

“[National Parks and National Landscapes] were not for any privileged or otherwise restricted section of the population, but for all who care to refresh their minds and spirits and to exercise their bodies in a peaceful setting of natural beauty … [they will be] in the full sense national … for people – and especially young people – of every class and kind and from every part of the country, indeed the world.” John Dower

The Peak District National Park

The Peak District was the first National Park to be designated in England and Wales in 1951 and remains one of the most popular, receiving up to 14 million annual visitors thanks to its proximity to many nearby towns and cities. Over a third of the Park is protected for wildlife and its three peaks, the Dark Peak, White Peak and South West Peak provide important habitat for many upland species such as White Mountain hares and the Golden Plover. With nearly 90% of the Park being farmland, it is a true living landscape shaped over decades by livestock and agricultural practice.

The Future of the Peak District

We welcomed the opportunity to comment on the issues and options consultation for a new Peak District National Park Local Plan with the aim of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of the Peak District.

Many of the threats to the Peak District’s natural beauty, such as road building, transport infrastructure, and housing developments, would be all too familiar to the environmentalist Ethel Haythornwaite, one of our founding members.

In today’s world, the countryside faces an increasing number of challenges and competing pressures that threaten its sustainability—some new, some old. As we look to the future, the countryside’s role in addressing key challenges like the climate, nature and housing crises becomes increasingly crucial. It’s essential that we continue our efforts to protect and enhance countryside, whilst nurturing a future where both people and nature thrive. Read more about our response to the Local Plan.

The Peak District was formally designated as Britain’s first national park in 1951, but this landmark moment followed several decades of campaigning by conservation and recreation bodies who argued that areas of special landscape value needed national protection. The Standing Committee on National Parks was established as far back as 1936 and its volunteer ranks included the Council for the Preservation for Rural England (represented locally today by CPRE Peak District and South Yorkshire). However, even before this, a group of campaigners, led by our founder, Ethel Haythornthwaite, had already drawn up a proposed boundary for a national park in the Peak District which turned out to be almost identical to the one we have today. She is seen here pictured with Jon Dower – both members of the Hobhouse Committee.

Learn more about the history of the Peak District National Park