An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB;Welsh: Ardal o Harddwch Naturiol Eithriadol, AHNE) is an area of countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are designated in recognition of their national importance by the relevant public body: Natural England, Natural Resources Wales, and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency respectively. In place of AONB, Scotland uses the similar national scenic area (NSA) designation. Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty enjoy levels of protection from development similar to those of UK national parks, but unlike national parks the responsible bodies do not have their own planning powers. They also differ from national parks in their more limited opportunities for extensive outdoor recreation.[1]
Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland
The idea for what would eventually become the AONB designation was first put forward by John Dower in his 1945 Report to the Government on National Parks in England and Wales. Dower suggested there was need for protection of certain naturally beautiful landscapes that were unsuitable as national parks owing to their small size and lack of wildness. Dower's recommendation for the designation of these "other amenity areas" was eventually embodied in the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 as the AONB designation.[2]
Purpose
The purpose of an AONB designation is to conserve and enhance the natural beauty of the designated landscape.[1]
There are two secondary aims: meeting the need for quiet enjoyment of the countryside and having regard for the interests of those who live and work there. To achieve these aims, AONBs rely on planning controls and practical countryside management. As they have the same landscape quality, AONBs may be compared to the national parks of England and Wales. National parks are well known in the UK; by contrast, there is evidence to indicate many residents in AONBs may be unaware of the status. However, the National Association of AONBs is working to increase awareness of AONBs in local communities,[3] and, in 2014, successfully negotiated to have the boundaries of AONBs in England shown on Google Maps.[4]
Statistical overview
View over Three Cliffs Bay in Gower AONB, the first to be designated
AONBs vary greatly in terms of size, type and use of land, and whether they are partly or wholly open to the public. The smallest AONB is the Isles of Scilly, 16 km2 (6.2 sq mi), and the largest is the Cotswolds,[7] 2,038 km2 (787 sq mi). AONB's cover around 15% of England's land area and 4% of Wales'. [8]
Legal status and organisation
AONBs in England and Wales were originally created under the same legislation as the national parks, the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. Unlike AONBs, national parks have special legal powers to prevent unsympathetic development. AONBs in general remain the responsibility of their local authorities by means of special committees that include members appointed by a minister and by parishes, and only very limited statutory duties were imposed on local authorities within an AONB by the original 1949 Act. However, further regulation and protection of AONBs in England and Wales was added by the Countryside and Rights of Way (CRoW) Act 2000, under which new designations are now made,[9][10]
The government stated in the National Planning Policy Framework (March 2012) that AONBs and national parks have equal status when it comes to planning decisions on landscape issues. Two of the AONBs (the Cotswolds and the Chilterns), which extend into a large number of local authority areas, have their own statutory bodies, known as conservation boards. The Glover Report in 2019 made various recommendations regarding the future of AONBs but as at 1 November 2020 the government has yet to respond to those recommendations, the report's 'central proposal' having been to bring National Parks and AONBs together as part of one 'family of national landscapes'.[11] However, the Cotswolds Conservation Board announced in September that they were re-styling the area name and it is now known as the Cotswolds National Landscape.[12]
All English and Welsh AONBs have a dedicated AONB officer and other staff. As required by the CRoW Act, each AONB has a management plan that sets out the characteristics and special qualities of the landscape and how they will be conserved and enhanced. The AONBs are collectively represented by the National Association for Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (NAAONB), an independent registered charity acting on behalf of AONBs and their partners, which uses the slogan "Landscapes for Life".[13]
AONBs in Northern Ireland was designated originally under the Amenity Lands (NI) Act 1965; subsequently under the Nature Conservation and Amenity Lands (NI) Order 1985.[14]
Threats
Falmer Stadium under construction in 2010 in the former Sussex Downs AONB
There are growing concerns among environmental and countryside groups that AONB status is increasingly under threat from development. The Campaign to Protect Rural England said in July 2006 that many AONBs were under greater threat than ever before.[15] Three particular AONBs were cited: the Dorset AONB threatened by a road plan, the threat of a football stadium in the Sussex Downs AONB, and, larger than any other, a £1 billion plan by Imperial College London to build thousands of houses and offices on hundreds of acres of AONB land on the Kent Downs at Wye.[16] In September 2007 government approval was finally given for the development of a new football ground for Brighton and Hove Albion within the boundaries of the Sussex Downs AONB, after a fierce fight by conservationists. The subsequent development, known as Falmer Stadium, was officially opened in July 2011. The Weymouth Relief Road in Dorset was constructed between 2008 and 2011, after environmental groups lost a High Court challenge to prevent its construction.[17]
Writing in 2006, Professor Adrian Phillips listed threats facing AONBs. He wrote that the apparent big threats were uncertainty over future support for land management, increasing development pressures, the impacts of globalization, and climate change. More subtle threats include creeping sub-urbanization and "horsiculture".[2]
The 2019 Landscape Review Report additionally favourably mentions proposals not listed in Natural England's list: from Sandstone Ridge and the Vale of Belvoir.[22]
"Guidance: Areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONBs): designation and management". gov.uk. Natural England.
March 17, 2023
area, outstanding, natural, beauty, aonb, welsh, ardal, harddwch, naturiol, eithriadol, ahne, area, countryside, england, wales, northern, ireland, that, been, designated, conservation, significant, landscape, value, areas, designated, recognition, their, nati. An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty AONB Welsh Ardal o Harddwch Naturiol Eithriadol AHNE is an area of countryside in England Wales and Northern Ireland that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value Areas are designated in recognition of their national importance by the relevant public body Natural England Natural Resources Wales and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency respectively In place of AONB Scotland uses the similar national scenic area NSA designation Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty enjoy levels of protection from development similar to those of UK national parks but unlike national parks the responsible bodies do not have their own planning powers They also differ from national parks in their more limited opportunities for extensive outdoor recreation 1 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England Wales and Northern Ireland Contents 1 History 2 Purpose 3 Statistical overview 4 Legal status and organisation 5 Threats 6 Celebration 7 List of Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty 7 1 England 7 1 1 Former Areas 7 2 Wales 7 3 Northern Ireland 7 4 Proposed areas in England 8 See also 9 References 10 External linksHistory EditThe idea for what would eventually become the AONB designation was first put forward by John Dower in his 1945 Report to the Government on National Parks in England and Wales Dower suggested there was need for protection of certain naturally beautiful landscapes that were unsuitable as national parks owing to their small size and lack of wildness Dower s recommendation for the designation of these other amenity areas was eventually embodied in the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 as the AONB designation 2 Purpose EditThe purpose of an AONB designation is to conserve and enhance the natural beauty of the designated landscape 1 There are two secondary aims meeting the need for quiet enjoyment of the countryside and having regard for the interests of those who live and work there To achieve these aims AONBs rely on planning controls and practical countryside management As they have the same landscape quality AONBs may be compared to the national parks of England and Wales National parks are well known in the UK by contrast there is evidence to indicate many residents in AONBs may be unaware of the status However the National Association of AONBs is working to increase awareness of AONBs in local communities 3 and in 2014 successfully negotiated to have the boundaries of AONBs in England shown on Google Maps 4 Statistical overview Edit View over Three Cliffs Bay in Gower AONB the first to be designated There are 46 AONBs in the United Kingdom 33 wholly in England four wholly in Wales one that straddles the Anglo Welsh border and eight in Northern Ireland The first AONB was designated in 1956 in the Gower Peninsula South Wales The most recently confirmed is the Tamar Valley AONB in 1995 5 although the existing Clwydian Range AONB covering the Clwydian Range only was extended in 2012 to form the Clwydian Range and Dee Valley AONB and the Strangford Lough and Lecale Coast AONBs were merged and redesignated as a single AONB in 2010 6 AONBs vary greatly in terms of size type and use of land and whether they are partly or wholly open to the public The smallest AONB is the Isles of Scilly 16 km2 6 2 sq mi and the largest is the Cotswolds 7 2 038 km2 787 sq mi AONB s cover around 15 of England s land area and 4 of Wales 8 Legal status and organisation EditAONBs in England and Wales were originally created under the same legislation as the national parks the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 Unlike AONBs national parks have special legal powers to prevent unsympathetic development AONBs in general remain the responsibility of their local authorities by means of special committees that include members appointed by a minister and by parishes and only very limited statutory duties were imposed on local authorities within an AONB by the original 1949 Act However further regulation and protection of AONBs in England and Wales was added by the Countryside and Rights of Way CRoW Act 2000 under which new designations are now made 9 10 The government stated in the National Planning Policy Framework March 2012 that AONBs and national parks have equal status when it comes to planning decisions on landscape issues Two of the AONBs the Cotswolds and the Chilterns which extend into a large number of local authority areas have their own statutory bodies known as conservation boards The Glover Report in 2019 made various recommendations regarding the future of AONBs but as at 1 November 2020 the government has yet to respond to those recommendations the report s central proposal having been to bring National Parks and AONBs together as part of one family of national landscapes 11 However the Cotswolds Conservation Board announced in September that they were re styling the area name and it is now known as the Cotswolds National Landscape 12 All English and Welsh AONBs have a dedicated AONB officer and other staff As required by the CRoW Act each AONB has a management plan that sets out the characteristics and special qualities of the landscape and how they will be conserved and enhanced The AONBs are collectively represented by the National Association for Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty NAAONB an independent registered charity acting on behalf of AONBs and their partners which uses the slogan Landscapes for Life 13 AONBs in Northern Ireland was designated originally under the Amenity Lands NI Act 1965 subsequently under the Nature Conservation and Amenity Lands NI Order 1985 14 Threats Edit Falmer Stadium under construction in 2010 in the former Sussex Downs AONB There are growing concerns among environmental and countryside groups that AONB status is increasingly under threat from development The Campaign to Protect Rural England said in July 2006 that many AONBs were under greater threat than ever before 15 Three particular AONBs were cited the Dorset AONB threatened by a road plan the threat of a football stadium in the Sussex Downs AONB and larger than any other a 1 billion plan by Imperial College London to build thousands of houses and offices on hundreds of acres of AONB land on the Kent Downs at Wye 16 In September 2007 government approval was finally given for the development of a new football ground for Brighton and Hove Albion within the boundaries of the Sussex Downs AONB after a fierce fight by conservationists The subsequent development known as Falmer Stadium was officially opened in July 2011 The Weymouth Relief Road in Dorset was constructed between 2008 and 2011 after environmental groups lost a High Court challenge to prevent its construction 17 Writing in 2006 Professor Adrian Phillips listed threats facing AONBs He wrote that the apparent big threats were uncertainty over future support for land management increasing development pressures the impacts of globalization and climate change More subtle threats include creeping sub urbanization and horsiculture 2 Celebration EditPoet Laureate Simon Armitage wrote a poem Fugitives commissioned by the National Association of AONBs which he read on Arnside Knott on 21 September 2019 to launch the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 18 19 20 List of Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty EditEngland Edit AONB Photo Established Area Local authoritiesArnside and Silverdale 1972 75 km2 29 sq mi Cumbria South Lakeland Lancashire Lancaster Blackdown Hills 1991 370 km2 140 sq mi Devon East Devon Mid Devon Somerset South Somerset Somerset West and Taunton Cannock Chase 1958 68 km2 26 sq mi Staffordshire Cannock Chase Lichfield Chichester Harbour 1964 37 km2 14 sq mi Hampshire Havant West Sussex Chichester Chiltern Hills 1965 833 km2 322 sq mi Buckinghamshire Central Bedfordshire Hertfordshire Dacorum North Hertfordshire Three Rivers Luton Oxfordshire South Oxfordshire Cornwall 1959 958 km2 370 sq mi CornwallCotswolds 1966 2 038 km2 787 sq mi Bath and North East Somerset Gloucestershire Cheltenham Cotswold Stroud Tewkesbury Oxfordshire Cherwell West Oxfordshire South Gloucestershire Warwickshire Stratford on Avon Wiltshire Worcestershire Wychavon Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs 1981 983 km2 380 sq mi Dorset Hampshire New Forest Somerset Mendip South Somerset WiltshireDedham Vale 1970 90 km2 35 sq mi Essex Colchester Tendring Suffolk Babergh Dorset 1959 1 129 km2 436 sq mi DorsetEast Devon 1963 268 km2 103 sq mi Devon East Devon Forest of Bowland 1964 803 km2 310 sq mi Lancashire Lancaster Pendle Ribble Valley Wyre North Yorkshire Craven High Weald 1983 1 460 km2 560 sq mi East Sussex Hastings Rother Wealden Kent Ashford Sevenoaks Tonbridge and Malling Tunbridge Wells Surrey Tandridge West Sussex Crawley Horsham Mid Sussex Howardian Hills 1987 204 km2 79 sq mi North Yorkshire Hambleton Ryedale Isle of Wight 1963 189 km2 73 sq mi Isle of WightIsles of Scilly 1975 16 km2 6 2 sq mi Isles of ScillyKent Downs 1968 878 km2 339 sq mi Greater London Bromley Kent Ashford Canterbury Dover Folkestone amp Hythe Gravesham Maidstone Sevenoaks Swale Tonbridge and Malling MedwayLincolnshire Wolds 1973 560 km2 220 sq mi Lincolnshire East Lindsey West Lindsey North East LincolnshireMalvern Hills 1959 105 km2 41 sq mi Gloucestershire Forest of Dean Herefordshire Worcestershire Malvern Hills Mendip Hills 1972 200 km2 77 sq mi Bath and North East Somerset North Somerset Somerset Mendip Sedgemoor Nidderdale 1994 603 km2 233 sq mi North Yorkshire Hambleton Harrogate Richmondshire Norfolk Coast 1968 453 km2 175 sq mi Norfolk Great Yarmouth King s Lynn and West Norfolk North Norfolk North Devon Coast 1959 171 km2 66 sq mi Devon North Devon Torridge North Pennines 1988 1 983 km2 766 sq mi County Durham Cumbria Carlisle Eden Northumberland North Yorkshire Richmondshire Northumberland Coast 1958 138 km2 53 sq mi NorthumberlandNorth Wessex Downs 1972 1 730 km2 670 sq mi Hampshire Basingstoke and Deane Test Valley Oxfordshire South Oxfordshire Vale of White Horse Swindon West Berkshire WiltshireQuantock Hills 1956 98 km2 38 sq mi Somerset Sedgemoor Somerset West and Taunton Shropshire Hills 1958 802 km2 310 sq mi Shropshire Telford and WrekinSolway Coast 1964 115 km2 44 sq mi Cumbria Allerdale Carlisle South Devon 1960 337 km2 130 sq mi Devon South Hams Plymouth TorbaySuffolk Coast and Heaths 1970 403 km2 156 sq mi Suffolk Babergh East Suffolk Surrey Hills 1958 422 km2 163 sq mi Surrey Guildford Mole Valley Reigate and Banstead Tandridge Waverley Tamar Valley 1995 190 km2 73 sq mi Cornwall Devon South Hams West Devon Wye Valley partly in Wales 1971 326 km2 126 sq mi Gloucestershire Forest of Dean Herefordshire Wales MonmouthshireTotal 19 035 km2 7 349 sq mi Former Areas Edit The establishment of the New Forest National Park in 2005 meant the subsumption of South Hampshire Coast AONB into it East Hampshire and Sussex Downs AONBs were replaced in 2010 by the South Downs National Park Wales Edit Main article Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Wales AONB AHNE Photo Established Area Local authoritiesAnglesey Ynys Mon 1967 221 km2 85 sq mi AngleseyClwydian Range and Dee Valley Bryniau Clwyd a Dyffryn Dyfrdwy 1985 389 km2 150 sq mi Denbighshire Flintshire WrexhamGower Gŵyr 1956 188 km2 73 sq mi SwanseaLlŷn 1956 155 km2 60 sq mi GwyneddWye Valley Dyffryn Gwy partly in England 1971 326 km2 126 sq mi Monmouthshire England Gloucestershire HerefordshireNorthern Ireland Edit AONB Photo Established Area Local authoritiesAntrim Coast and Glens 1989 724 km2 280 sq mi Causeway Coast and Glens Mid and East AntrimBinevenagh 1966 a 138 km2 53 sq mi Causeway Coast and GlensCauseway Coast 1989 42 km2 16 sq mi Causeway Coast and GlensLagan Valley 1965 39 km2 15 sq mi Belfast Lisburn and CastlereaghMourne Mountains 1986 570 km2 220 sq mi Armagh City Banbridge and Craigavon Newry Mourne and DownRing of Gullion 1966 b 154 km2 59 sq mi Newry Mourne and DownSperrins 1968 1 181 km2 456 sq mi Causeway Coast and Glens Derry and Strabane Fermanagh and Omagh Mid UlsterStrangford and Lecale 6 1967 c 525 km2 203 sq mi Ards and North Down Newry Mourne and DownNotes as North Derry AONB extended and redesignated as Binevenagh AONB in 2006 redesignated as Ring of Gullion in 1991 Lecale Coast AONB Strangford Lough AONB designated 1972 Redesignated as a single AONB in 2010 Proposed areas in England Edit For proposed areas in Wales see Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Wales Proposed areas The following are formal proposals for new AONBs submitted to Natural England 21 Cambs Ouse Valley Churnet Valley Forest of Dean Herefordshire Marches Northants Ironstone Uplands Yorkshire WoldsThe 2019 Landscape Review Report additionally favourably mentions proposals not listed in Natural England s list from Sandstone Ridge and the Vale of Belvoir 22 See also EditConservation in the United Kingdom European Landscape Convention Landscape scale conservation National parks of England and Wales National parks of Northern Ireland Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in WalesReferences Edit a b Areas of outstanding natural beauty AONBs designation and management GOV UK Gov uk Retrieved 16 February 2018 a b NAAONB Archived from the original on 29 August 2017 Retrieved 16 February 2018 NAAONB Archived from the original on 13 September 2014 Retrieved 16 February 2018 Suffolk Coast amp Heaths AONB PDF Archived from the original PDF on 28 September 2018 Retrieved 16 February 2018 Tamar Valley What is the Tamar Valley AONB www tamarvalley org uk Retrieved 16 February 2018 a b Northern Ireland Environment Agency Retrieved 16 February 2018 Cotswolds AONB Archived from the original on 14 September 2014 About Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty AONB s landscapesforlife org uk Retrieved 10 April 2022 Staffordshire Moorlands District Council Archived 11 September 2014 at the Wayback Machine High Weald AONB Archived from the original on 28 September 2018 Retrieved 16 February 2018 Landscapes review National Parks and AONBs GOV UK Retrieved 3 June 2022 Latest News The Cotswolds AONB gets a new look and a new name Cotswolds National Landscape Cotswolds AONB Retrieved 31 October 2020 Landscapes for Life Association for AONBs Retrieved 27 September 2019 Northern Ireland Environment Agency Archived from the original on 2 September 2014 CPRE News releases Outstandingly beautiful still seriously threatened 26 September 2006 Archived from the original on 26 September 2006 Retrieved 16 February 2018 save wye org save wye org Archived from the original on 7 May 2009 Retrieved 30 June 2013 Relief road opens after 60 years BBC News 17 March 2011 Retrieved 16 February 2018 Celebrating our special landscapes Arnside and Silverdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty 23 September 2019 Retrieved 27 September 2019 Poem commissioned to celebrate national parks Ecologist 25 September 2019 Retrieved 27 September 2019 Armitage Simon Fugitives PDF Retrieved 27 September 2019 Glover Julian September 2019 Landscape Review Final Report PDF DEFRA p 153 Retrieved 23 January 2020 Glover Julian September 2019 Landscape Review Final Report PDF DEFRA p 121 Retrieved 23 January 2020 External links EditNational Association of AONBs website Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty registered charity no 1158871 Charity Commission for England and Wales Guidance Areas of outstanding natural beauty AONBs designation and management gov uk Natural England Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty amp oldid 1145057932, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
