This December we’re celebrating the 75th anniversary of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act. Back in 1949 this was ground-breaking legislation laying the foundations to protect and enhance natural beauty and secure access to and through open countryside. The 1949 Act gave the legislative framework to designate National Parks, Conservation Areas (subsequently called Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and now rebranded as National Landscapes) and long-distance trails – our National Trails.
Seventy-five years on, 15 National Parks, 46 National Landscapes and 20 National Trails have been created. In England alone, these designations stretch over 26% of the land and when the King Charles III England Coast Path is fully open, over 5,000 miles of National Trail will be accessible across the country.
The 1947 Hobhouse Report identified a list of candidate long-distance trails: Pennine Way; Ridgeway; Pilgrim’s Way from Canterbury to Winchester; the South Downs path; Offa’s Dyke; and the Roman Wall track from Newcastle to the Solway. The table below lists the English National Trails, with the King Charles III England Coast Path in the final stages of establishment with many sections open and the ‘Wainwright’ Coast to Coast Path designation process underway.
It’s worth looking back at the context in which the 1949 Act was passed. The UK was in significant upheaval post-war with major food, housing and resource shortages. During this period the Labour government established National Insurance, created the framework for our town and country planning system and began a significant building programme including council houses and new towns and in 1948 established the National Health Service. This was also a time of change in the countryside. The 1940’s Dig for Victory campaign which aimed to increase food security and the ongoing industrialisation of agriculture changed our lowland landscapes and people’s access to nature. One year after the creation of the NHS the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act set out the basis of our Natural Health Service to address some of these challenges.
Today many of the same imperatives exist, with a need to boost house-building, pressures on our town and country planning system, challenges in funding food security and landscape protection post Brexit, and the importance of connecting people to nature post Covid. In addition, our network of protected landscapes face the intersectional challenges of climate change and nature in crisis.
Our National Trails are a valuable shared resource, used by over 305 million people each year to enjoy the great outdoors. National Trails not only connect us to nature, they also make a vital contribution to the economy and the nation’s health and wellbeing. The combined economic impact of the National Trails is over £1.8 billion annually and the health and wellbeing impact on people using the network saves public health over £300 million a year.
As we celebrate this important anniversary, it’s worth thinking about what legislation the current government could craft that would have a similar scale of impact to the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act. It’s also a good time to reflect on our current system of Protected Landscapes and whether they’re still fit for purpose in connecting people to nature and enhancing the special qualities of our amazing countryside. These are issues that will be debated at the 2025 South West Coast Path Forum. We look forward to seeing you there.
To celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act, Natural England have produced a two-part podcast. The first episode looking back at the last 75 years and the second episode looking forward to the next 75 years. It was an honour to be invited to be part of the discussion alongside Stuart Pasley Natural England’s Principle Officer, Strategy and podcast host Lindsey Chapman on the second podcast.
Written by Julian Gray
Director, South West Coast Path Association
The South West Coast Path 