England’s National Parks are amongst its finest and most treasured landscapes.They include many areas prized for their remoteness, tranquillity and their importance for nature conservation. But, despite their apparent wildness, the landscapes we see today are cultural landscapes – the result of thousands of years of human interaction with nature.They continue to be living and working landscapes and the people who manage the land today help safeguard their special qualities.

The heritage of each National Park is fundamental to its unique present-day character. It exerts a powerful influence on modern land use within the Parks, on their patterns of woodland, wetland, common land and fields and on the character of their villages and towns.This heritage is central to the sense of identity of the communities living in the Parks and a key factor encouraging inward investment and tourism.

A Landscape Legacy: National Parks and the historic environment describes some of the important work being undertaken within the English National Parks to realise the potential of the historic environment – work that is helping people to understand, value, care for and enjoy their heritage, now and in the future.

The document is available to download in PDF format.